Analysts Set Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) PT at $192.00

Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $183.40.

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on HLI shares. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $192.00 target price (up previously from $170.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com cut shares of Houlihan Lokey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $179.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $172.00 to $169.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Houlihan Lokey

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HLI. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,532 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $258,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its position in Houlihan Lokey by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,617 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $281,000 after buying an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC grew its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 12,220 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,122,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its position in Houlihan Lokey by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 1,636 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $284,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp increased its position in Houlihan Lokey by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 3,771 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $655,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

NYSE HLI opened at $156.34 on Monday. Houlihan Lokey has a twelve month low of $122.14 and a twelve month high of $192.10. The stock has a market cap of $10.97 billion, a PE ratio of 29.84 and a beta of 0.84. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $166.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $172.28.

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

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.51%.

About Houlihan Lokey

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.