Argent Capital Management LLC Reduces Stake in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Argent Capital Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 240,813 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 3,031 shares during the quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC owned about 0.35% of Houlihan Lokey worth $38,053,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 0.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,104,143 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $654,300,000 after acquiring an additional 29,843 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC grew its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 1.9% during the second quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 3,273,818 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $441,507,000 after buying an additional 62,314 shares in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 1.3% during the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 3,087,898 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $416,434,000 after buying an additional 38,155 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 6.2% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 776,335 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $104,697,000 after buying an additional 45,205 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 1.2% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 517,952 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $69,851,000 after buying an additional 6,291 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.07% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HLI has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Houlihan Lokey in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an "underweight" rating and a $149.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $132.00 to $129.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group upped their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a "market perform" rating and set a $154.00 price target (up previously from $139.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $146.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $157.00.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

NYSE:HLI traded up $1.91 during trading on Thursday, reaching $168.05. The company's stock had a trading volume of 314,848 shares, compared to its average volume of 320,369. The firm has a market cap of $11.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.71 and a beta of 0.66. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $158.78 and a 200-day moving average of $143.71. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 12 month low of $94.67 and a 12 month high of $175.21.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.22. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 18.80% and a net margin of 15.30%. The firm had revenue of $514.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $508.70 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.89 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.36%. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio is presently 55.47%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,317 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.89, for a total transaction of $1,263,269.13. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,317 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.89, for a total transaction of $1,263,269.13. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Gillian Beth Zucker sold 200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.08, for a total value of $33,616.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,601 shares in the company, valued at $1,109,496.08. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,917 shares of company stock valued at $1,513,129 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 25.97% 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.