Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Sells 2,098 Shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lowered its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) by 10.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 17,395 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,098 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $3,021,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Private Trust Co. NA bought a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter worth about $53,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter worth about $62,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 81.5% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 441 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

Shares of HLI stock opened at $155.78 on Friday. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 52 week low of $121.81 and a 52 week high of $192.10. The company has a market capitalization of $10.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.73 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $174.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $171.88.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.13. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 16.00%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 EPS for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio is 43.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on HLI. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Houlihan Lokey from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $180.00 to $179.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Houlihan Lokey from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and cut their price target for the company from $201.00 to $190.00 in a research note on Thursday. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $172.00 to $169.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Houlihan Lokey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Houlihan Lokey has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $192.00.

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.