Principal Financial Group Inc. Purchases 4,637 Shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. $HLI

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) by 4.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 121,733 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,637 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.17% of Houlihan Lokey worth $17,483,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 362.1% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,703,369 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $296,706,000 after purchasing an additional 1,334,769 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 2,723.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,199,459 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $208,934,000 after purchasing an additional 1,156,973 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter valued at about $115,478,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new position in Houlihan Lokey during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $35,728,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its position in Houlihan Lokey by 153.8% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 274,387 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,376,000 after purchasing an additional 166,285 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Down 0.6%

NYSE HLI opened at $139.10 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.61 billion, a PE ratio of 22.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.95. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $141.32 and its 200 day moving average is $154.14. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a twelve month low of $130.72 and a twelve month high of $211.78.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $635.64 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $679.22 million. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 22.88%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.96 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 7.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. This is an increase from Houlihan Lokey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Houlihan Lokey’s payout ratio is presently 45.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on HLI shares. Wolfe Research upgraded Houlihan Lokey from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. UBS Group upped their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $160.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $172.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, US Capital Advisors set a $187.00 price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Houlihan Lokey has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $180.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Houlihan Lokey news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 6,265 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.26, for a total value of $941,378.90. Following the sale, the chairman owned 6,265 shares in the company, valued at approximately $941,378.90. This represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 22.83% of the company’s stock.

About Houlihan Lokey

Houlihan Lokey, Inc is a global investment bank and financial services firm founded in 1972 and headquartered in Los Angeles, California. The company specializes in advisory services across a broad range of transaction types and financial matters. Since its founding, Houlihan Lokey has grown to serve corporations, financial sponsors, and government entities worldwide, providing expertise in complex and high-stakes engagements.

The firm’s core service offerings include mergers and acquisitions advisory, capital markets advisory, financial restructuring and distressed M&A, and valuation and fairness opinions.