Barclays PLC Purchases 6,483 Shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 21.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,821 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 6,483 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned approximately 0.05% of Houlihan Lokey worth $5,818,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 264.5% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 226 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Houlihan Lokey in the second quarter worth $38,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its position in Houlihan Lokey by 81.5% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 441 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in Houlihan Lokey during the third quarter worth $76,000. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HLI has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered Houlihan Lokey from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $171.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday. UBS Group raised their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley downgraded Houlihan Lokey from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $171.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $157.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Houlihan Lokey currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $174.20.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HLI traded up $1.23 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $173.97. 1,371,242 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 326,204. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $178.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $157.76. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 12 month low of $112.17 and a 12 month high of $192.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.09 billion, a PE ratio of 35.58 and a beta of 0.67.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $574.96 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $537.93 million. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 15.77% and a return on equity of 19.29%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 23.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.11 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.31%. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio is 46.63%.

Insider Activity at Houlihan Lokey

In other Houlihan Lokey news, Director Gillian Beth Zucker sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.08, for a total transaction of $33,616.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 6,601 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,109,496.08. This represents a 2.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 23.68% of the company's stock.

About Houlihan Lokey

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.