Investment banking firm Houlihan Lokey (NYSE: HLI) reported Q3 CY2025 results beating Wall Street’s revenue expectations, with sales up 14.7% year on year to $659.5 million. Its non-GAAP profit of $1.84 per share was 9.3% above analysts’ consensus estimates.
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Houlihan Lokey (HLI) Q3 CY2025 Highlights:
- Revenue: $659.5 million vs analyst estimates of $652.7 million (14.7% year-on-year growth, 1% beat)
- Pre-tax Profit: $160.1 million (24.3% margin, 17.6% year-on-year growth)
- Adjusted EPS: $1.84 vs analyst estimates of $1.68 (9.3% beat)
- Market Capitalization: $13.95 billion
“Our results for the quarter reflect our strong business model and improving market conditions. We enter the second half of the year with optimism for continued momentum,” stated Scott Adelson, Chief Executive Officer of Houlihan Lokey.
Company Overview
Founded in 1972 and known for its expertise in complex financial situations, Houlihan Lokey (NYSE: HLI) is a global investment bank specializing in mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, financial restructurings, and valuation advisory services.
Revenue Growth
A company’s long-term sales performance is one signal of its overall quality. Even a bad business can shine for one or two quarters, but a top-tier one grows for years. Luckily, Houlihan Lokey’s revenue grew at an impressive 18% compounded annual growth rate over the last five years. Its growth surpassed the average financials company and shows its offerings resonate with customers, a great starting point for our analysis.
Long-term growth is the most important, but within financials, a half-decade historical view may miss recent interest rate changes and market returns. Houlihan Lokey’s annualized revenue growth of 19.9% over the last two years is above its five-year trend, suggesting its demand was strong and recently accelerated. 
Note: Quarters not shown were determined to be outliers, impacted by outsized investment gains/losses that are not indicative of the recurring fundamentals of the business.
This quarter, Houlihan Lokey reported year-on-year revenue growth of 14.7%, and its $659.5 million of revenue exceeded Wall Street’s estimates by 1%.
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Key Takeaways from Houlihan Lokey’s Q3 Results
It was good to see Houlihan Lokey beat analysts’ EPS expectations this quarter. We were also happy its revenue narrowly outperformed Wall Street’s estimates. Overall, we think this was a decent quarter with some key metrics above expectations. The stock remained flat at $199.29 immediately after reporting.
Big picture, is Houlihan Lokey a buy here and now? What happened in the latest quarter matters, but not as much as longer-term business quality and valuation, when deciding whether to invest in this stock. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here, it’s free for active Edge members.
