Can You Imagine How Houlihan Lokey's (NYSE:HLI) Shareholders Feel About The 90% Share Price Increase?
By buying an index fund, investors can approximate the average market return. But if you choose individual stocks with prowess, you can make superior returns. Just take a look at Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI), which is up 90%, over three years, soundly beating the market return of 36% (not including dividends). However, more recent returns haven't been as impressive as that, with the stock returning just 15% in the last year , including dividends .
View our latest analysis for Houlihan Lokey
While markets are a powerful pricing mechanism, share prices reflect investor sentiment, not just underlying business performance. By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time.
During three years of share price growth, Houlihan Lokey achieved compound earnings per share growth of 31% per year. This EPS growth is higher than the 24% average annual increase in the share price. So it seems investors have become more cautious about the company, over time.
You can see how EPS has changed over time in the image below (click on the chart to see the exact values).
We know that Houlihan Lokey has improved its bottom line over the last three years, but what does the future have in store? Take a more thorough look at Houlihan Lokey's financial health with this free report on its balance sheet.
What About Dividends?
When looking at investment returns, it is important to consider the difference between total shareholder return (TSR) and share price return. The TSR incorporates the value of any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings, along with any dividends, based on the assumption that the dividends are reinvested. So for companies that pay a generous dividend, the TSR is often a lot higher than the share price return. As it happens, Houlihan Lokey's TSR for the last 3 years was 104%, which exceeds the share price return mentioned earlier. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence!
A Different Perspective
It's nice to see that Houlihan Lokey shareholders have gained 15% (in total) over the last year. And yes, that does include the dividend. That falls short of the 27% it has made, for shareholders, each year, over three years. Before forming an opinion on Houlihan Lokey you might want to consider these 3 valuation metrics.
But note: Houlihan Lokey may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with past earnings growth (and further growth forecast).
Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on US exchanges.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
