Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Lowers Stock Holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. $HLI

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund cut its position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) by 26.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,401 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $1,922,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Houlihan Lokey by 64.4% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 148 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the second quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 179.2% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 201 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the period. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 136.9% in the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 308 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Houlihan Lokey news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were 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 through this link. Also, Director Robert A. Schriesheim sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the director directly owned 27,982 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,781,004.52. The trade was a 15.16% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 22.83% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of HLI stock opened at $165.85 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $177.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $186.71. The company has a market cap of $11.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.48 and a beta of 0.94. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 12 month low of $137.99 and a 12 month high of $211.78.

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

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Houlihan Lokey’s payout ratio 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.