Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) Short Interest Update

Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totalling 983,600 shares, a growth of 27.7% from the June 15th total of 770,300 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 323,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.0 days.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Up 1.9 %

HLI opened at $144.12 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.07 and a beta of 0.67. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $133.92 and its 200-day moving average is $128.05. Houlihan Lokey has a 52-week low of $94.67 and a 52-week high of $145.55.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $520.46 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $508.99 million. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 14.64% and a return on equity of 18.08%. The business’s revenue was up 17.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.11 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey will post 5.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 3rd were paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 3rd. This is a positive change from Houlihan Lokey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Houlihan Lokey’s payout ratio is 55.47%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on HLI shares. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $132.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $145.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Houlihan Lokey news, Chairman Irwin Gold sold 9,902 shares of Houlihan Lokey stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.25, for a total transaction of $1,339,245.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Houlihan Lokey news, insider David A. Preiser sold 20,000 shares of Houlihan Lokey stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.21, for a total transaction of $2,664,200.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Irwin Gold sold 9,902 shares of Houlihan Lokey stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.25, for a total transaction of $1,339,245.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 25.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Houlihan Lokey

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 0.5% in the first quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 18,293 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,345,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 3,198 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $383,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 1.4% in the second quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 8,532 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,151,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,139 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $137,000 after buying an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

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.