Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) Lowered to “Sell” Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note published on Saturday.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on HLI. Bank of America started coverage on Houlihan Lokey in a report on Friday, July 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $164.00 target price for the company. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $161.00 to $147.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $187.00 to $177.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Zacks Research raised shares of Houlihan Lokey from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $171.00 to $148.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Houlihan Lokey has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $166.38.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

Shares of HLI stock opened at $129.26 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.73, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.95. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $137.44 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $150.13. Houlihan Lokey has a 1 year low of $112.83 and a 1 year high of $211.78.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.64 by ($0.29). The company had revenue of $511.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $602.38 million. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 20.20% and a net margin of 16.10%.Houlihan Lokey’s revenue was down 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.14 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Houlihan Lokey will post 7.13 EPS for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.06%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 6,265 shares of Houlihan Lokey stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.26, for a total transaction of $941,378.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 6,265 shares in the company, valued at approximately $941,378.90. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 22.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Houlihan Lokey

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 362.1% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,703,369 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $296,706,000 after purchasing an additional 1,334,769 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 2,723.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,199,459 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $208,934,000 after purchasing an additional 1,156,973 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter valued at about $115,478,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 1st quarter valued at about $35,728,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 153.8% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 274,387 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,376,000 after buying an additional 166,285 shares in the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Houlihan Lokey Company Profile

Houlihan Lokey, Inc is a global investment bank and financial services firm founded in 1972 and headquartered in Los Angeles, California. The company specializes in advisory services across a broad range of transaction types and financial matters. Since its founding, Houlihan Lokey has grown to serve corporations, financial sponsors, and government entities worldwide, providing expertise in complex and high-stakes engagements.

The firm’s core service offerings include mergers and acquisitions advisory, capital markets advisory, financial restructuring and distressed M&A, and valuation and fairness opinions.