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BRK.A vs. HLI: Berkshire Hathaway vs. Houlihan Lokey Stock Comparison

How do Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Houlihan Lokey (HLI) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Houlihan Lokey (HLI) both fall under the Financial Services industry group, but BRK.A is classified in Financial Services while HLI is classified in Capital Markets.

Company profile comparison for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Houlihan Lokey (HLI)
Profile ItemBRK.AHLI
NameBerkshire Hathaway Inc. Class AHoulihan Lokey, Inc.
Country/RegionUnited StatesUnited States
GICS SectorFinancialsFinancials
GICS Industry GroupFinancial ServicesFinancial Services
GICS IndustryFinancial ServicesCapital Markets
GICS Sub-IndustryMulti-Sector HoldingsInvestment Banking & Brokerage
Market Capitalization1,222.51 billion USD10.13 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNYSENYSE
Listing DateMarch 17, 1980August 13, 2015
Security TypeCommon StockCommon Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

BRK.A
HLI
GSPC
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Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Houlihan Lokey (HLI), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Houlihan Lokey (HLI). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Houlihan Lokey (HLI). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Houlihan Lokey (HLI)
MetricBRK.AHLI
Total Return (1Y)13.87%-16.23%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)17.28%15.13%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)14.57%6.74%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

BRK.A
HLI
GSPC
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Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Houlihan Lokey (HLI), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Houlihan Lokey (HLI). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Houlihan Lokey (HLI)
MetricBRK.AHLI
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)14.86%31.00%
Beta (5Y)0.560.87
Max Drawdown (5Y)-25.98%-40.30%
Avg. Volume (3M)206816.85K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

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BRK.A and HLI are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Houlihan Lokey (HLI)
MetricBRK.AHLI
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)0.65-0.66
Sortino Ratio (1Y)0.96-0.91

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 12.12% and Houlihan Lokey (HLI) at 17.29% land near their industries’ usual ROE ranges, so capital efficiency looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

12.12%

Max
44.78%
Q3
21.85%
Median
12.91%
BRK.A
12.12%
Q1
4.48%
Min
-18.71%

HLI

Financial Services industry group

17.29%

Max
44.78%
Q3
21.85%
HLI
17.29%
Median
12.91%
Q1
4.48%
Min
-18.71%
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Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Houlihan Lokey (HLI): A comparison of their ROE against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Both Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 22.30% and Houlihan Lokey (HLI) at 15.80% keep about the typical share of revenue as profit for their industries — neither bottom line stands out from peers.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

22.30%

Max
62.84%
Q3
28.05%
BRK.A
22.30%
Median
15.36%
Q1
4.82%
Min
-28.52%

HLI

Financial Services industry group

15.80%

Max
62.84%
Q3
28.05%
HLI
15.80%
Median
15.36%
Q1
4.82%
Min
-28.52%
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Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Houlihan Lokey (HLI): A comparison of their net margin against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 32.56% and Houlihan Lokey (HLI) at 24.42% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

32.56%

Max
107.33%
Q3
55.90%
BRK.A
32.56%
Median
30.09%
Q1
14.60%
Min
-44.34%

HLI

Financial Services industry group

24.42%

Max
107.33%
Q3
55.90%
Median
30.09%
HLI
24.42%
Q1
14.60%
Min
-44.34%
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Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Houlihan Lokey (HLI): A comparison of their operating margin against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Houlihan Lokey (HLI)
MetricBRK.AHLI
ROE (TTM)12.12%17.29%
ROA (TTM)6.01%10.38%
Net Margin (TTM)22.30%15.80%
Operating Margin (TTM)32.56%24.42%
Gross Margin (TTM)----

Growth

Revenue Growth

Houlihan Lokey (HLI) at 9.55% is around its peer norm for revenue growth, while Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at -3.23% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker demand or pricing momentum.

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Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Houlihan Lokey (HLI): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Houlihan Lokey (HLI) at 6.87% is around its peer norm for EPS growth, while Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at -24.78% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker earnings momentum.

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Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Houlihan Lokey (HLI): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Houlihan Lokey (HLI)
MetricBRK.AHLI
Revenue Growth (YoY)-3.23%9.55%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)20.59%13.10%
EPS Growth (YoY)-24.78%6.87%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)--16.05%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

current ratio doesn’t apply on either side: Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) in Financial Services and Houlihan Lokey (HLI) in Financial Services both report balance sheets without a current/non-current split, so their short-term liquidity is better judged through regulatory and funding measures.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

debt-to-equity ratio is set aside for both: Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) in Financial Services and Houlihan Lokey (HLI) in Financial Services run businesses where balance-sheet leverage is part of the model, so capital-adequacy and funding measures are the better gauges of balance-sheet risk.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Houlihan Lokey (HLI)
MetricBRK.AHLI
Current Ratio (MRQ)----
Debt / Equity (MRQ)----
Net Debt / EBITDA----

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Houlihan Lokey (HLI) reports a yield of 1.77%, ranking against industry peers normally.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

0.00%

Max
9.77%
Q3
3.92%
Median
1.09%
BRK.A
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

HLI

Financial Services industry group

1.77%

Max
9.77%
Q3
3.92%
HLI
1.77%
Median
1.09%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Houlihan Lokey (HLI): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Houlihan Lokey (HLI) reports a payout of 43.62%, ranking against industry peers normally.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

0.00%

Max
241.07%
Q3
97.36%
Median
25.77%
BRK.A
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

HLI

Financial Services industry group

43.62%

Max
241.07%
Q3
97.36%
HLI
43.62%
Median
25.77%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Houlihan Lokey (HLI): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Houlihan Lokey (HLI)
MetricBRK.AHLI
Dividend Yield (TTM)0.00%1.77%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)0.00%43.62%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 14.36 and Houlihan Lokey (HLI) at 24.47 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

14.36

Max
45.85
Q3
24.64
Median
15.37
BRK.A
14.36
Q1
9.68
Min
0.16

HLI

Financial Services industry group

24.47

Max
45.85
Q3
24.64
HLI
24.47
Median
15.37
Q1
9.68
Min
0.16
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Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Houlihan Lokey (HLI): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 3.18 and Houlihan Lokey (HLI) at 3.96 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

3.18

Max
9.23
Q3
4.57
BRK.A
3.18
Median
2.72
Q1
1.28
Min
-0.55

HLI

Financial Services industry group

3.96

Max
9.23
Q3
4.57
HLI
3.96
Median
2.72
Q1
1.28
Min
-0.55
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Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Houlihan Lokey (HLI): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 1.72 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while Houlihan Lokey (HLI) at 4.39 carries an above-peer premium to book — HLI is pricier on assets.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

1.72

Max
7.79
Q3
3.63
BRK.A
1.72
Median
1.57
Q1
0.81
Min
-0.39

HLI

Financial Services industry group

4.39

Max
7.79
HLI
4.39
Q3
3.63
Median
1.57
Q1
0.81
Min
-0.39
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Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Houlihan Lokey (HLI): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Houlihan Lokey (HLI)
MetricBRK.AHLI
P/E Ratio (TTM)14.3624.47
P/S Ratio (TTM)3.183.96
P/B Ratio (MRQ)1.724.39
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)----