Norges Bank Acquires New Shares in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 656,723 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $114,047,000. Norges Bank owned 0.94% of Houlihan Lokey at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,265,574 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $914,420,000 after purchasing an additional 98,495 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 21,106 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 970,559 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $153,405,000 after acquiring an additional 26,564 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter valued at about $143,559,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 602,956 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $104,709,000 after purchasing an additional 1,931 shares in the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HLI traded down $6.91 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $146.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 779,749 shares, compared to its average volume of 343,969. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.94 and a beta of 0.83. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 1-year low of $122.14 and a 1-year high of $192.10. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $169.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $172.89.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.13. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 16.00% and a return on equity of 20.04%. Analysts predict that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Houlihan Lokey's payout ratio is currently 43.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on HLI shares. UBS Group raised their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $229.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Houlihan Lokey from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $180.00 to $179.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $192.00 target price (up previously from $170.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced 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. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Houlihan Lokey presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $192.00.

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.