Fifth Third Bancorp Reduces Stock Holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Fifth Third Bancorp lowered its position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) by 40.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 13,136 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $3,128,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in Houlihan Lokey by 80.9% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 5,638 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $979,000 after purchasing an additional 2,521 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 17,726 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,078,000 after buying an additional 488 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers grew its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 166,038 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,834,000 after buying an additional 2,559 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 6,518 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,132,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 8.2% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 131,096 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $22,766,000 after purchasing an additional 9,914 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

Shares of HLI stock opened at $171.28 on Friday. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 1 year low of $128.63 and a 1 year high of $192.10. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $167.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $170.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.95 billion, a PE ratio of 32.69 and a beta of 0.83.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.35. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 16.00%. The company had revenue of $666.42 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $628.25 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.27 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This is a positive change from Houlihan Lokey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Houlihan Lokey’s payout ratio is 41.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Houlihan Lokey from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $190.00 to $156.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Houlihan Lokey currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $185.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,008 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.71, for a total value of $1,431,109.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.02, for a total value of $86,510.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 23.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Houlihan Lokey

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.