Empowered Funds LLC Purchases 2,864 Shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) by 24.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,409 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,864 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $2,277,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,104,143 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $654,300,000 after purchasing an additional 29,843 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 3,273,818 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $441,507,000 after purchasing an additional 62,314 shares during the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 3,087,898 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $416,434,000 after purchasing an additional 38,155 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 6.2% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 776,335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $104,697,000 after purchasing an additional 45,205 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 1.2% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 517,952 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $69,851,000 after acquiring an additional 6,291 shares during the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

HLI opened at $185.01 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $12.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.83 and a beta of 0.65. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $168.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $150.57. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $102.29 and a fifty-two week high of $190.66.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $574.96 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $537.93 million. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 15.77% and a return on equity of 19.29%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.11 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.79 EPS for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Houlihan Lokey from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $154.00 target price (up from $139.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $132.00 to $129.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $146.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $157.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.29, for a total value of $155,290.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gillian Beth Zucker sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.08, for a total transaction of $33,616.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,601 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,109,496.08. This trade represents a 2.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,400 shares of company stock worth $219,362 over the last quarter. 23.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.