Woodson Capital Management LP Reduces Stock Position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Woodson Capital Management LP lessened its holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 38.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,600 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 24,400 shares during the period. Woodson Capital Management LP owned about 0.06% of Houlihan Lokey worth $6,100,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Houlihan Lokey in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 264.5% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 226 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Houlihan Lokey in the 2nd quarter worth about $38,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC acquired a new stake in Houlihan Lokey in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 81.5% in the 3rd 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.07% of the company's stock.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

Shares of HLI stock traded up $1.66 during trading on Friday, hitting $189.09. 142,701 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 321,025. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 52-week low of $105.34 and a 52-week high of $192.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.33 and a beta of 0.65. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $172.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $152.98.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.15. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 19.29% and a net margin of 15.77%. The firm had revenue of $574.96 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $537.93 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.11 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 23.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio is presently 46.63%.

Insider Activity at Houlihan Lokey

In other Houlihan Lokey news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.29, for a total transaction of $155,290.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Gillian Beth Zucker sold 200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.08, for a total value of $33,616.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,601 shares in the company, valued at $1,109,496.08. This trade represents a 2.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,400 shares of company stock worth $219,362. Insiders own 23.68% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on HLI. StockNews.com cut Houlihan Lokey from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Houlihan Lokey in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an "underweight" rating and a $149.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $146.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Houlihan Lokey presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $157.00.

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.