Citigroup Inc. Sells 4,627 Shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. $HLI

Citigroup Inc. lowered its holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) by 4.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 109,057 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,627 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. owned about 0.16% of Houlihan Lokey worth $22,392,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 14.4% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 49,584 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,008,000 after buying an additional 6,253 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 50.0% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 29,654 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,598,000 after acquiring an additional 9,891 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC acquired a new position in Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter valued at approximately $18,964,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 5.7% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 415,743 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $67,143,000 after purchasing an additional 22,553 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 36.3% during the 2nd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 469,653 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $84,514,000 after purchasing an additional 125,049 shares during the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HLI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $218.00 to $214.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 29th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $196.00 price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $216.00 to $215.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Houlihan Lokey from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $209.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $209.17.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.17, for a total transaction of $87,085.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert A. Schriesheim sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.86, for a total value of $854,300.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 27,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,781,004.52. The trade was a 15.16% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 22.83% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

Shares of HLI opened at $168.90 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $11.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.94 and a beta of 0.94. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 52 week low of $137.99 and a 52 week high of $211.78. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $175.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $185.39.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.09. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 24.46% and a net margin of 16.91%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.64 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.87%.

Houlihan Lokey 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.