Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) Hits New 12-Month Low on Analyst Downgrade

Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday after Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on the stock from $172.00 to $160.00. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Houlihan Lokey traded as low as $130.83 and last traded at $131.4540, with a volume of 221576 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $135.33.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on HLI. Wolfe Research upgraded Houlihan Lokey from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $210.00 to $184.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $160.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. US Capital Advisors set a $187.00 price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Thursday. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Houlihan Lokey from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $180.50.

Insider Transactions at Houlihan Lokey

In related news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 6,265 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.26, for a total transaction of $941,378.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 6,265 shares in the company, valued at $941,378.90. The trade was a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 22.83% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Oakworth Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Core Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 2nd quarter valued at about $39,000. Institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $143.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $156.25. The company has a market cap of $9.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.95.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $635.64 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $679.22 million. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 22.88%. The firm’s revenue was down 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.96 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 8.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a $0.70 dividend. This is a positive change from Houlihan Lokey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.02%.

Houlihan Lokey Company 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.