Stifel Financial Corp Purchases 26,780 Shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 42.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 89,788 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 26,780 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp owned 0.13% of Houlihan Lokey worth $14,188,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Crewe Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 264.5% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 226 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the second quarter worth about $38,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 81.5% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 441 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the third quarter valued at about $76,000. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

Houlihan Lokey stock traded up $1.20 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $178.57. The company had a trading volume of 175,500 shares, compared to its average volume of 319,670. The firm has a market cap of $12.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.27 and a beta of 0.67. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 12-month low of $112.17 and a 12-month high of $192.10. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $176.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $155.99.

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

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.28%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio is currently 46.63%.

Insider Transactions at Houlihan Lokey

In other Houlihan Lokey news, Director Gillian Beth Zucker sold 200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.08, for a total value of $33,616.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 6,601 shares in the company, valued at $1,109,496.08. This represents a 2.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 23.68% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Houlihan Lokey from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $171.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Monday. UBS Group upped their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Houlihan Lokey in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an "underweight" rating and a $149.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $164.40.

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.