At a glance
Houlihan Lokey Inc is worth $9.54B, about 22 times its fiscal 2026 earnings. Revenue grew 9.5% to $2.62B in fiscal 2026, with 16.3% kept as profit; over 5 years it has grown 11.4% a year. It pays a 1.89% dividend yield, raised every year for at least 9 years, and returned $1.35B to shareholders in dividends and buybacks over FY2022–FY2026. The stock returned −30.8% over the past year with dividends reinvested and +8.1% a year over five years, against +11.5% and +11.7% for the S&P 500. At its worst it fell 19.4% in the 2020 crash (S&P 500: 33.7%) and 36.6% in the 2022 bear market (S&P 500: 24.5%), and was back at its earlier high within a month and 17 months after the lows.
The business in plain English
Houlihan Lokey, founded in 1972, is an independent investment bank that earns fees for advice. It counsels corporations, financial sponsors (private equity firms and similar investors) and government agencies on mergers and acquisitions (M&A), raising capital, reworking debt and valuing businesses. In Corporate Finance and Restructuring, a large share of fees is typically paid only when a deal is completed. The firm does no lending, securities trading or investment research, activities it says could conflict with clients' interests.
In the fiscal year ended March 31, 2026, revenue was $2.62 billion. Corporate Finance, covering M&A and capital raising, supplied $1.74 billion, or 66.7%. Most of its work involves mid-size deals, and the company believes it handles more sales of companies valued under $1 billion than any competitor. Financial Restructuring, 20.2%, advises troubled companies and their creditors, in or out of bankruptcy. Financial and Valuation Advisory, 13.2%, provides valuations and independent financial opinions on transactions.
The United States produced 67.8% of revenue and other countries 32.2%. As of March 31, 2026, the firm had more than 1,900 financial professionals in more than thirty offices, serving more than 2,000 clients a year. About 850 employees owned roughly 21% of the company. Restructuring work often rises when M&A slows, giving the firm some balance across economic cycles.
Price history
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HLI -30.8% over the year to Oct 28, 2026, total return with dividends reinvested.
How it makes money
By business segment
| Corporate Finance | $1.74B | 66.7% |
| Financial Restructuring | $528.7M | 20.2% |
| Financial and Valuation Advisory | $344.2M | 13.2% |
By geography
| United States | $1.78B | 67.8% |
| International | $842.2M | 32.2% |
Latest results
- In Q2 FY2027 (ended Sep 30, 2026), revenue was $692.0M, up 4.8% from a year earlier, and net income was $109.0M (-1.8%).
- For fiscal 2026, revenue was $2.62B (+9.5% year over year; +11.4% a year from FY2021 to FY2026) with a 16.3% net margin.
Financial health check
| Revenue growth a year (FY2021–FY2026) | +11.4% good |
|---|---|
| Operating margin | 20.1% good |
| Free cash flow margin | 26% good |
| Return on equity (FY2026) | 18.2% good |
| Return on assets (FY2026) | 9.9% good |
| Cash and investments | $837.0M (no borrowings found in the filings) good |
| Fiscal year | Revenue | Net income | Free cash flow |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2021 | $1.53B | $312.8M | $565.7M |
| FY2022 | $2.27B | $437.8M | $727.9M |
| FY2023 | $1.81B | $254.2M | $85.5M |
| FY2024 | $1.91B | $280.3M | $261.7M |
| FY2025 | $2.39B | $399.7M | $808.9M |
| FY2026 | $2.62B | $425.7M | $681.8M |
Valuation snapshot
| Market value | $9.54B |
|---|---|
| P/E ratio | 22.1 |
| Dividend yield | 1.89% |
Rank among 1514 US companies
Price behavior
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HLI price data to Oct 28, 2026 | -20.0% | -30.8% | +13.5% | +8.1% | +21.3% |
Show as a table
| Year | Price data |
|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | -20.0% |
| 2025 | +1.6% |
| 2024 | +47.1% |
| 2023 | +40.6% |
| 2022 | -13.9% |
| 2021 | +57.0% |
| 2020 | +40.6% |
| 2019 | +36.3% |
| 2018 | -17.2% |
| 2017 | +49.3% |
| 2016 | +21.8% |
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Before this security existed |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Lost 16.2% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 19.4%, back to its old high 0.5 months after the low |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Lost 22.7% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 36.6%, back to its old high 16.7 months after the low |
Insider activity
Form 4 filings from 2025-10-31 to 2026-10-31 (25 read): 1 open-market purchases ($501K) and 5 sales ($2.1M), 2 of them under pre-arranged 10b5-1 trading plans.
| Date | Insider | Type | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 21, 2026 | Scott L Beiser CO-CHAIRMAN, Director, 10% owner | sell | $941K |
| Feb 6, 2026 | Robert A Schriesheim Director | sell | $854K |
| Aug 3, 2026 | J Lindsey Alley Chief Financial Officer | buy | $501K |
| Sep 10, 2026 | Christopher M Crain GENERAL COUNSEL | sell | $140K |
| Jan 2, 2026 | Christopher M Crain GENERAL COUNSEL | sell (plan) | $87K |
Who owns it
Large shareholders (13G filings)
| BlackRock, Inc. | 8.9% | Mar 31, 2025 |
| Vanguard Capital Management | 5.2% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| Vanguard Portfolio Management | 5.12% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management, LLC | 4.9% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| EARNEST PARTNERS LLC | 4.9% | Mar 31, 2025 |
ETFs with the most weight in HLI
| AMID Argent Mid Cap ETF | 3.13% |
| SMCO Hilton Small-MidCap Opportunity ETF | 2.55% |
| OUSM ALPS | O’Shares U.S. Small-Cap Quality Dividend ETF | 2.19% |
| PFI Invesco Dorsey Wright Financial Momentum ETF | 1.91% |
| KCE SPDR S&P Capital Markets ETF | 1.73% |
| OSCV Opus Small Cap Value ETF | 1.61% |
| JMID Janus Henderson Mid Cap Growth Alpha ETF | 1.3% |
| QMID WisdomTree U.S. MidCap Quality Growth Fund | 1.18% |
What could go wrong
- Fees often hinge on deals closing. In Corporate Finance and Restructuring, a large share of fees is typically paid only when a transaction completes. Delayed or collapsed deals can make revenue and profit swing sharply from quarter to quarter.
- Economic swings can hurt either way. Recessions, high interest rates or tight credit can shrink merger and capital-raising work (66.7% of revenue); strong economies can reduce restructuring work (20.2%). Some costs are fixed, so profits can fall faster than revenue.
- Depends on keeping senior bankers. The business depends on Managing Directors and other senior professionals and their client relationships. Losing them, or failing to recruit and develop new talent, could hurt revenue. Pay includes deferred stock to encourage staying.
- Bigger rivals offer more services. Rivals include large banks that can offer clients a wider range of products, such as lending, which Houlihan Lokey does not provide. That can cost it engagements and push down the fees it charges.
- Acquisitions could lead to write-downs. Growth comes partly from acquisitions. Goodwill (the amount paid above acquired firms' identifiable net assets) and other intangibles form a large part of its assets. A write-down would hit reported profits.
- Fewer governance protections for shareholders. Houlihan Lokey is a "controlled company" under NYSE rules, meaning one holder or group controls most voting power. It uses exemptions from some governance standards, so Class A shareholders lack certain usual protections.
Recent events
- Quarterly results released
- Executive or board change
- Executive or board change; Shareholder vote results; Investor presentation or announcement
- Executive or board change
- Other company announcement
- Quarterly results released
- Quarterly results released
- Other company announcement
- Executive or board change
- Quarterly results released
For income and retirement investors
Houlihan Lokey pays a quarterly dividend and has raised it for at least 9 straight fiscal years. Dividends per share rose from $1.34 in fiscal 2021 to $2.54 in the year ended March 31, 2026, about 13.7% a year. That fiscal 2026 dividend used 40.9% of earnings and 25.5% of free cash flow (cash left after capital spending), leaving a cushion. The yield was a modest 1.89% as of October 28, 2026. Over fiscal 2022–2026 the company also spent $606 million on buybacks, alongside $743 million in dividends. It says it may change its dividend policy at any time.
In the 2020 COVID crash the shares fell 19.4% but regained their peak about half a month after the low. In the 2022 bear market they fell 36.6% and took nearly 17 months from the low to recover. As of October 28, 2026, they were down 30.8% over one year. A single stock carries more risk than a diversified fund.
Questions investors ask
How does Houlihan Lokey make money?
Houlihan Lokey earns advisory fees rather than interest or trading profits. In the fiscal year ended March 31, 2026, Corporate Finance, which advises on mergers, acquisitions and capital raising, produced 66.7% of its $2.62 billion in revenue. Financial Restructuring, which helps struggling companies and their creditors rework debt, produced 20.2%. Financial and Valuation Advisory, which values businesses and assets and gives financial opinions on transactions, produced 13.2%. Many Corporate Finance and Restructuring fees are paid only when a deal completes.
Does Houlihan Lokey raise its dividend every year?
Yes, so far. Its SEC filings show at least 9 consecutive annual increases through the fiscal year ended March 31, 2026, and the full streak may be longer. Dividends per share reached $2.54 in fiscal 2026, up from $1.34 in fiscal 2021, growth of about 13.7% a year. The yield (yearly dividends as a share of the price) was 1.89% as of October 28, 2026. The company says it may change its dividend policy at any time, so past increases are no guarantee.
How does Houlihan Lokey do in a recession?
Partly cushioned, but not immune. Downturns tend to reduce merger, capital-raising and valuation work, and Corporate Finance alone was 66.7% of revenue in fiscal 2026. Restructuring, 20.2% of revenue, often gets busier when companies struggle, which the company calls a countercyclical hedge, meaning it tends to move opposite to the economy. The cushion has limits: revenue fell from $2.27 billion in fiscal 2022 to $1.81 billion in fiscal 2023, and the shares dropped 36.6% during the 2022 bear market.
Does Houlihan Lokey have debt?
It appears to have little or none. Its SEC filings as of June 30, 2026 show no borrowings in the standard debt line items. At that date the company held $745 million in cash and investments, with total assets of $3.72 billion and shareholders' equity of $2.26 billion. As an adviser, it does not lend to clients or commit its own capital to their deals, which keeps its balance sheet simpler than a lending bank's.
How has Houlihan Lokey stock performed?
Strongly over the long run, poorly over the latest year. As of October 28, 2026, the share price had gained an average of 21.3% a year over 10 years but was down 30.8% over one year and 20% year to date, after falling as much as 38.3% from its high within that year. In the quarter ended June 30, 2026, revenue fell 15.5% from a year earlier to $511 million and net income fell 20.4%. The shares traded at 22.1 times fiscal 2026 earnings.