Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Decreases Position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lessened its holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) by 16.1% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 65,366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 12,557 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $8,379,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of HLI. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter worth $70,225,000. Capital International Investors increased its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 56.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 792,073 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $94,977,000 after purchasing an additional 286,746 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 39.1% in the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 693,248 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $83,128,000 after acquiring an additional 194,867 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 819.2% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 216,186 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,923,000 after acquiring an additional 192,668 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barlow Wealth Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the fourth quarter valued at about $20,237,000. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

HLI stock traded up $2.65 on Tuesday, hitting $150.42. 22,085 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 333,210. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a twelve month low of $94.67 and a twelve month high of $151.28. The business’s fifty day moving average is $136.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $130.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.95 and a beta of 0.67.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.07. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 14.64% and a return on equity of 18.08%. The company had revenue of $520.46 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $508.99 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.11 earnings per share. Houlihan Lokey’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This is an increase from Houlihan Lokey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 3rd. Houlihan Lokey’s payout ratio is currently 55.47%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider David A. Preiser sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.21, for a total value of $2,664,200.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Houlihan Lokey news, insider David A. Preiser sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.21, for a total transaction of $2,664,200.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Irwin Gold sold 9,902 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.25, for a total transaction of $1,339,245.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 25.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $131.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $145.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $132.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Houlihan Lokey has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $148.00.

Houlihan Lokey 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.