New York State Common Retirement Fund Increases Stock Position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) by 5.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 168,931 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,905 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.24% of Houlihan Lokey worth $20,257,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the fourth quarter valued at about $54,000. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. lifted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the third quarter valued at approximately $87,000. Planned Solutions Inc. bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter worth $87,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 34.9% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 870 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $93,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of HLI stock opened at $126.70 on Friday. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 52 week low of $84.89 and a 52 week high of $133.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.76 billion, a PE ratio of 31.44 and a beta of 0.68. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $126.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $118.10.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.10. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 18.06%. The company had revenue of $511.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $493.02 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.14 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 4.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.59%.

Insider Activity

In related news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.94, for a total transaction of $128,940.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 25.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HLI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $127.00 target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Monday, January 29th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $136.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd.

Houlihan Lokey Company 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.