Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) Upgraded to “Buy” at StockNews.com

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on HLI. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $172.00 to $170.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Morgan Stanley downgraded Houlihan Lokey from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $171.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $180.00 to $178.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $173.40.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

NYSE:HLI traded up $3.58 on Tuesday, hitting $184.16. 445,529 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 426,978. The company has a market cap of $12.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.66 and a beta of 0.69. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $179.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $166.59. Houlihan Lokey has a 52 week low of $119.28 and a 52 week high of $192.10.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.13. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 15.77% and a return on equity of 19.29%. On average, research analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey will post 5.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Houlihan Lokey

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Fiera Capital Corp lifted its position in Houlihan Lokey by 666.8% during the third quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 283,702 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $44,831,000 after purchasing an additional 246,705 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 341.0% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 307,304 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $53,366,000 after acquiring an additional 237,615 shares during the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC bought a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 3rd quarter worth $24,177,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 33.0% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 601,025 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $94,974,000 after acquiring an additional 149,114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 23.6% in the third quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 693,109 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $109,525,000 after acquiring an additional 132,516 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

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.