Entropy Technologies LP Boosts Stock Position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Entropy Technologies LP lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 142.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,507 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,407 shares during the quarter. Entropy Technologies LP's holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $1,304,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Barclays PLC increased its position in Houlihan Lokey by 21.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 36,821 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,818,000 after buying an additional 6,483 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its position in Houlihan Lokey by 2.5% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 399,388 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $63,111,000 after buying an additional 9,768 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in Houlihan Lokey by 1.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,615,467 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $255,276,000 after buying an additional 21,106 shares during the last quarter. Gunderson Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Houlihan Lokey in the fourth quarter worth $5,133,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its position in Houlihan Lokey by 2,482.4% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 9,813 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,551,000 after buying an additional 9,433 shares during the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Down 0.1 %

NYSE:HLI traded down $0.21 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $178.27. 356,432 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 420,074. The firm has a market cap of $12.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.02 and a beta of 0.69. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 52 week low of $121.81 and a 52 week high of $192.10. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $177.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $169.46.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.13. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 16.00%. On average, analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 EPS for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HLI has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $178.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $229.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $200.00 to $201.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $192.00 price target (up from $170.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $194.40.

Houlihan Lokey 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.