Jennison Associates LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 341.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 307,304 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 237,615 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC owned approximately 0.44% of Houlihan Lokey worth $53,366,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC raised its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 0.8% in the third quarter. Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC now owns 8,103 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,293,000 after buying an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 857 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $135,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 17,238 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,724,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC lifted its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 21,787 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,443,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Houlihan Lokey by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,387 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $241,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $172.00 to $169.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $178.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price 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, StockNews.com downgraded Houlihan Lokey from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $194.40.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

HLI traded down $2.36 on Friday, reaching $185.04. 347,314 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 416,864. The company's 50-day moving average price is $178.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $168.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.86 billion, a PE ratio of 35.31 and a beta of 0.69. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $121.81 and a fifty-two week high of $192.10.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.13. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 16.00%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.23%. Houlihan Lokey's payout ratio is currently 43.51%.

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.