StockNews.com Downgrades Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) to Hold

StockNews.com cut shares of Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $200.00 to $201.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and set a $192.00 target price (up from $170.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $178.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $172.00 to $169.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Houlihan Lokey has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $194.40.

Houlihan Lokey Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of HLI stock opened at $170.53 on Tuesday. Houlihan Lokey has a 1 year low of $121.81 and a 1 year high of $192.10. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $177.04 and its 200-day moving average is $171.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.54 and a beta of 0.69.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.13. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 16.00%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Houlihan Lokey will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Houlihan Lokey’s payout ratio is 43.51%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Houlihan Lokey

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,265,574 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $914,420,000 after purchasing an additional 98,495 shares in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 3,281,294 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $569,830,000 after acquiring an additional 208,851 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,875,220 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $325,651,000 after purchasing an additional 161,647 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 1.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,615,467 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $255,276,000 after purchasing an additional 21,106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 1,251,831 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $217,393,000 after purchasing an additional 20,354 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Company Profile

Houlihan Lokey, Inc, an investment banking company, provides merger and acquisition (M&A), capital market, financial restructuring, and financial and valuation advisory services worldwide. It operates in three segments: Corporate Finance, Financial Restructuring, and Financial and Valuation Advisory.