Bayforest Capital Ltd Lowers Holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. $HLI

Bayforest Capital Ltd trimmed its holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) by 15.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 5,188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 927 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd’s holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $934,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HLI. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Houlihan Lokey by 145.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,250 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $686,000 after acquiring an additional 2,520 shares during the period. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter worth $619,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 5.9% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 29,103 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,700,000 after buying an additional 1,618 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 44.4% during the first quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 20,347 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,286,000 after buying an additional 6,255 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Miller Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter worth $224,000. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

Houlihan Lokey stock opened at $191.69 on Tuesday. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 1-year low of $137.99 and a 1-year high of $211.78. The stock has a market cap of $13.48 billion, a PE ratio of 32.27 and a beta of 0.87. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $198.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $182.24.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.45. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 23.75% and a net margin of 16.46%.The company had revenue of $605.35 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $573.07 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.22 earnings per share. Houlihan Lokey’s quarterly revenue was up 17.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. 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 Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Houlihan Lokey’s payout ratio is 40.40%.

Insider Transactions at Houlihan Lokey

In other news, Chairman Paul Eric Siegert sold 40,000 shares of Houlihan Lokey stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.95, for a total transaction of $7,998,000.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of Houlihan Lokey stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.22, for a total value of $98,110.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 47,311 shares of company stock worth $9,477,040. Corporate insiders own 22.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on HLI. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Thursday. They set a “hold” rating and a $210.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $192.00 to $213.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered Houlihan Lokey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $185.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $212.43.

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.