Van ECK Associates Corp Increases Stock Position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 43.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 46,857 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 14,141 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned 0.07% of Houlihan Lokey worth $8,137,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HLI. Bleakley Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 4.8% during the third quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 4,275 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $676,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the period. Net Worth Advisory Group bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the third quarter worth approximately $325,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 27.1% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,733 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $748,000 after purchasing an additional 1,010 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 1.1% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 157,759 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $24,929,000 after purchasing an additional 1,747 shares during the period. Finally, Berry Wealth Group LP increased its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 8.3% during the third quarter. Berry Wealth Group LP now owns 2,209 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $349,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. 78.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HLI traded down $6.91 during trading on Thursday, hitting $175.72. 288,740 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 410,419. The business's fifty day moving average is $177.69 and its 200 day moving average is $170.30. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $121.81 and a fifty-two week high of $192.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.53 and a beta of 0.69.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last posted 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%. On average, analysts predict that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 EPS for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Houlihan Lokey's payout ratio is 43.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on HLI shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $200.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $229.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating 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 on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Houlihan Lokey has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $194.40.

Houlihan Lokey Company 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.