Retirement Systems of Alabama Decreases Stock Position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Retirement Systems of Alabama trimmed its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 64,631 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 817 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $8,716,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 194.9% in the first quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 401 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter worth about $74,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter valued at about $82,000. 78.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

Shares of Houlihan Lokey stock opened at $155.35 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $142.65 and a 200 day moving average of $133.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.80 and a beta of 0.67. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $94.67 and a fifty-two week high of $156.80.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.22. The business had revenue of $514.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $508.70 million. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 18.80% and a net margin of 15.30%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.89 EPS. Analysts forecast that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.67 EPS for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Houlihan Lokey

In other news, insider David A. Preiser sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Houlihan Lokey news, Chairman Irwin Gold sold 9,902 shares of Houlihan Lokey stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.25, for a total value of $1,339,245.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider David A. Preiser sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.21, for a total transaction of $2,664,200.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 38,419 shares of company stock worth $5,297,213 over the last three months. Insiders own 25.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on HLI. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $131.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $154.00 price objective (up previously from $139.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group raised their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $157.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $132.00 to $129.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $150.25.

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.