Whittier Trust Co. Boosts Holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. $HLI

Whittier Trust Co. grew its position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) by 10.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 78,222 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,294 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co. owned about 0.11% of Houlihan Lokey worth $11,011,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 362.1% in the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,703,369 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $296,706,000 after purchasing an additional 1,334,769 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 2,723.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,199,459 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $208,934,000 after acquiring an additional 1,156,973 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter worth approximately $115,478,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new position in Houlihan Lokey in the 1st quarter valued at $35,728,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its position in Houlihan Lokey by 153.8% in the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 274,387 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,376,000 after acquiring an additional 166,285 shares during the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Zacks Research upgraded Houlihan Lokey from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $205.00 to $193.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $177.00 to $172.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Houlihan Lokey from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, UBS Group set a $160.00 target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Houlihan Lokey has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $191.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 6,265 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.26, for a total value of $941,378.90. Following the sale, the chairman owned 6,265 shares in the company, valued at $941,378.90. This represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 22.83% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

Houlihan Lokey stock traded down $0.92 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $141.53. 60,146 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 637,629. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 12 month low of $131.30 and a 12 month high of $211.78. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $144.94 and a two-hundred day moving average of $157.38. The company has a market cap of $9.77 billion, a PE ratio of 22.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.95.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by ($0.16). Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 22.88% and a net margin of 16.26%.The firm had revenue of $635.64 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $679.22 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.96 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 8.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. This is an increase from Houlihan Lokey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Houlihan Lokey’s payout ratio is presently 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.