StockNews.com Upgrades Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) to Buy

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Thursday.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on HLI. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $192.00 price objective (up from $170.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $172.00 to $169.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $229.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $200.00 to $201.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $194.40.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Up 0.5 %

HLI opened at $178.35 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $177.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $169.25. Houlihan Lokey has a twelve month low of $121.81 and a twelve month high of $192.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.04 and a beta of 0.69.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.13. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 16.00% and a return on equity of 20.04%. As a group, analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.28%. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.51%.

Institutional Trading of Houlihan Lokey

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Private Trust Co. NA bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the third quarter worth approximately $38,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the fourth quarter worth approximately $53,000. Finally, VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the fourth quarter worth approximately $62,000. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.