The Goldman Sachs Group Cuts Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) Price Target to $210.00

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) had its price target trimmed by The Goldman Sachs Group from $243.00 to $210.00 in a report published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $196.00 price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Friday, January 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $218.00 to $214.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings cut Houlihan Lokey from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $216.00 to $215.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $209.00 to $211.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Houlihan Lokey presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $204.57.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HLI opened at $139.57 on Thursday. Houlihan Lokey has a 1-year low of $137.99 and a 1-year high of $211.78. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $170.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $182.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.44 and a beta of 0.95.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 last year, the firm posted $1.64 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey will post 5.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio is 36.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Houlihan Lokey

In other Houlihan Lokey news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.17, for a total transaction of $87,085.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available 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 completion of the sale, the director directly owned 27,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,781,004.52. This represents a 15.16% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 22.83% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Houlihan Lokey

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HLI. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Oakworth Capital Inc. bought a new position in Houlihan Lokey in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 64.4% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 148 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Core Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

About Houlihan Lokey

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.