Scott Beiser sounds understandably upbeat. As the chief executive of Houlihan Lokey prepares to report the investment bank’s third-quarter earnings for the last three months of 2021 on February 8 (its financial year runs from April to April), he can reflect on record year-to-date results and the completion of the biggest acquisition the firm has ever undertaken, its purchase of Tokyo-listed tech-focused investment bank GCA in October.
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Houlihan’s revenues rose 32% in the 2021 calendar year to more than $1.5 billion, with its corporate finance division up 24% – making up just over half the firm’s total. Its restructuring unit accounts for 35% of revenues, with financial and valuation advisory making up the rest. Pre-tax profits for the group rose 73% over the same period.
And the stock has been on a tear – it is up 115% since the start of 2020, after being down only about 7% at its Covid low on March 25, 2020. That's the kind of performance that most of its rivals can only dream of.
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