22,600 Shares in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. $HLI Acquired by ING Groep NV

ING Groep NV bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 22,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,640,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of HLI. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 14.4% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 49,584 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,008,000 after acquiring an additional 6,253 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 50.0% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 29,654 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,598,000 after purchasing an additional 9,891 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC bought a new position in Houlihan Lokey in the first quarter worth about $18,964,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 5.7% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 415,743 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $67,143,000 after purchasing an additional 22,553 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the second quarter valued at about $212,000. Institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on HLI. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $209.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $218.00 to $214.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $196.00 price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $216.00 to $215.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Houlihan Lokey from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Houlihan Lokey currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $209.17.

Insider Transactions at Houlihan Lokey

In related news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.17, for a total value of $87,085.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Robert A. Schriesheim sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.86, for a total transaction of $854,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 27,982 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,781,004.52. This trade represents a 15.16% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 22.83% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Trading Down 2.4%

NYSE HLI opened at $166.15 on Friday. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 12-month low of $137.99 and a 12-month high of $211.78. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $178.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $187.14. The stock has a market cap of $11.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.52 and a beta of 0.94.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $717.07 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $696.72 million. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 24.46% and a net margin of 16.91%.The firm’s revenue was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.64 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be paid a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.87%.

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.