Virtu Financial LLC Buys New Holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. $HLI

Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 4,955 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $863,000.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 14.4% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 49,584 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,008,000 after purchasing an additional 6,253 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 50.0% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 29,654 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,598,000 after buying an additional 9,891 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC purchased a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the 1st quarter valued at $18,964,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in Houlihan Lokey by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 415,743 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $67,143,000 after buying an additional 22,553 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new stake in Houlihan Lokey in the 2nd quarter worth $1,033,000. 78.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Up 0.1%

NYSE:HLI opened at $140.88 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $149.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $160.45. The stock has a market cap of $9.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.95. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a twelve month low of $133.83 and a twelve month high of $211.78.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last issued 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). Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 22.88% and a net margin of 16.26%.The company had revenue of $635.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $679.22 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.96 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 8.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Houlihan Lokey

In other Houlihan Lokey news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of Houlihan Lokey stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.40, for a total transaction of $71,700.00. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $71,700. The trade was a 50.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 6,265 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.26, for a total value of $941,378.90. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 6,265 shares in the company, valued at $941,378.90. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 22.83% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on HLI shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Houlihan Lokey from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $210.00 to $184.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $205.00 to $193.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. UBS Group set a $160.00 price target on Houlihan Lokey in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $177.00 to $172.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $191.29.

Houlihan Lokey Profile

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.