nVerses Capital LLC Makes New $442,000 Investment in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor acquired 2,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $442,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Crewe Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 264.5% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring 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 about $38,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the 2nd quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 194.9% during the 1st quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 401 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

Shares of Houlihan Lokey stock opened at $173.93 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.93 billion, a PE ratio of 42.32 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $157.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $142.46. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a one year low of $94.67 and a one year high of $174.09.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22. The firm had revenue of $514.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $508.70 million. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 18.80% and a net margin of 15.30%. Houlihan Lokey’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.89 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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 was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.31%. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,317 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.89, for a total value of $1,263,269.13. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,317 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gillian Beth Zucker sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.49, for a total value of $30,498.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 7,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,067,582.49. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,917 shares of company stock worth $1,513,129 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 25.97% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey 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.