HLI
Houlihan Lokey, Inc.
HLI's fundamentals are mixed: its operating margin held steady at 20%, but earnings per share fell 3.9%. At 24x earnings, it's trading in line with its usual 23x. Analysts expect earnings growth.
HLI Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
HLI's profitability is currently healthy, and its revenue is stable. Free cash flow and net leverage aren't meaningful measures for financial services companies like HLI.
HLI PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 17x | $101 | -29% |
| Forward | 18x | $143 | — |
| Fair | 22x | $134 | -6.7% |
| Current | 24x | $143 | — |
| Expensive | 32x | $193 | +34% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
HLI's PE is in its fair range at 24x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 18x next year's earnings, in its cheap range.
HLI Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for HLI, with profitability improving.
HLI Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $8.11 | +36% |
| Q3 2026 | $5.96 | -3.9% |
| Q2 2026 | $5.95 | +0.2% |
| Q1 2026 | $6.22 | +6.9% |
| Q4 2025 | $6.51 | +24% |
| Q3 2025 | $6.20 | +27% |
| Q2 2025 | $5.94 | +32% |
| Q1 2025 | $5.82 | +42% |
| Q4 2024 | $5.24 | +35% |
HLI earned $5.96 per share over the past year, down 3.9% from the year before.
HLI Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $692M | +4.9% |
| Q2 2026 | $511M | -16% |
| Q1 2026 | $635.6M | -4.6% |
| Q4 2025 | $717.1M | +13% |
| Q3 2025 | $659.5M | +15% |
| Q2 2025 | $605.3M | +18% |
| Q1 2025 | $666.4M | +28% |
| Q4 2024 | $634.4M | +24% |
HLI's revenue fell from its 2021 peak and has held roughly level since: $692M last quarter, up 4.9% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 22% | -0.7 points |
| Q2 2026 | 15% | +0.4 points |
| Q1 2026 | 20% | -1.2 points |
| Q4 2025 | 22% | +1 points |
| Q3 2025 | 23% | +0.2 points |
| Q2 2025 | 15% | -3.8 points |
| Q1 2025 | 21% | +1.2 points |
| Q4 2024 | 21% | +2.6 points |
HLI's operating margin was 22% last quarter, down 0.7 points from the same quarter a year ago.
HLI Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $240M | -26% |
| Q2 2026 | -$342M | -$197.2M |
| Q1 2026 | $286.8M | -17% |
| Q4 2025 | $217M | -17% |
| Q3 2025 | $322.8M | +16% |
| Q2 2025 | -$144.8M | -$69.4M |
| Q1 2025 | $343.9M | +61% |
| Q3 2024 | $278.7M | +148% |
HLI's free cash flow was $402M over the past year, down 49% from the year before. Free cash flow isn't a meaningful measure for financial services companies like HLI.
HLI Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.9% | -600K shares |
| 1 year | -2.3% | -1.6M shares |
| 3 years | -1.3% | -867K shares |
| 5 years | -2.3% | -1.6M shares |
| Available history | +2.1% | +1.4M shares |
HLI has 67M diluted shares, down 2.3% from a year ago, with $238M in buybacks over the past year.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $50M |
| Q2 2026 | $50M |
| Q1 2026 | $50M |
| Q4 2025 | $87.9M |
| Q3 2025 | $29.7M |
| Q2 2025 | $7.8M |
| Q1 2025 | $52.2M |
| Q4 2024 | $86,000 |
HLI spent $238M buying back its own shares over the past year, up 165% from the year before.
HLI Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -1.5x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -1.4x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -2.1x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -1.8x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -1.6x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -1.5x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -1.8x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -1.6x | Net Cash |
HLI has more cash than debt. Net leverage isn't a meaningful measure for financial services companies like HLI.
HLI Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 54.3 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 68.0 | Neutral |
HLI's weekly RSI is 54 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 68 (neutral).
HLI PE vs Financial Services Sector
| Metric | HLI | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 24x | 13x | 85% above |
| PE % | 57 | 63 | 6 pts below |
HLI is trading at 24x earnings, a 85% premium to the Financial Services sector's median of 13x.
HLI Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $134.2 | 6.9% above |
| 20 week MA | $134.0 | 7.1% above |
| 50 week MA | $149.1 | 3.8% below |
| 100 week MA | $164.4 | 13% below |
| 200 week MA | $143.2 | 0.2% above |
HLI's trend is mixed: it's above three of its five weekly moving averages, and 0.2% above its 200-week average.
HLI Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $48.9 | $67.2 | +37% |
| 2021 | $67.2 | $103.6 | +54% |
| 2022 | $103.6 | $89.2 | -14% |
| 2023 | $89.2 | $119.9 | +35% |
| 2024 | $119.9 | $174.3 | +45% |
| 2025 | $174.3 | $178.5 | +2.4% |
| 2026 YTD | $178.5 | $143.4 | -20% |
HLI has finished higher in five of the last six years. It's down 20% so far in 2026.