Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.15 EPS

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.15, Briefing.com reports. The firm had revenue of $574.96 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $537.93 million. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 19.67% and a net margin of 15.77%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 23.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.11 earnings per share.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:HLI traded down $1.46 on Friday, hitting $171.31. 568,915 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 322,297. Houlihan Lokey has a 52 week low of $100.92 and a 52 week high of $175.73. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $160.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $145.55. The company has a market cap of $11.91 billion, a PE ratio of 35.01 and a beta of 0.66.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.33%. Houlihan Lokey’s payout ratio is presently 46.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on HLI. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $154.00 price target (up previously from $139.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group raised their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $146.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $149.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $132.00 to $129.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $157.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,317 shares of the firm’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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Gillian Beth Zucker sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.49, for a total transaction of $30,498.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,001 shares in the company, valued at $1,067,582.49. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,317 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.89, for a total value of $1,263,269.13. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,917 shares of company stock worth $1,513,129 over the last three months. 23.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.