Huron Consulting (HURN) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $2.54B
• Dividend Yield: N/A
• Average Volume (3M): 291.82K
• Price to Earnings (P/E): 22.1
• Beta (1Y): 0.44
• Revenue Growth: 8.83%
• EPS Growth: 92.48%
• Country: US
• Employees: 6,405
• Sector: Industrials
• Sector Strength: 78
• Industry: Consulting Services
• EPS (TTM): 6.66
• Shares Outstanding: 17,248,034
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 281,003
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 291,821
• PEG Ratio: 0.24
• Price to Book (P/B): N/A
• Price to Sales (P/S): 0.00
• Price to Cash Flow (P/CF): 0.00
• P/FCF Ratio: 0.00
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: 1.28
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: N/A
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: 6.81
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: N/A
• 1Y Price Target: $165.67
• Price Target Upside: 12.43% Upside
• Rating Consensus: Strong Buy
• Number of Analyst Covering: 5

Huron Consulting scores well due to strong financial performance, healthy revenue growth, and efficient cash flow management. Despite some challenges with operating expenses in the healthcare segment and margin declines in the commercial segment, the company's overall financial health and growth prospects remain robust. Technical indicators suggest a balanced momentum, and the reasonable P/E ratio supports its current valuation.

Positive Factors

Financial Performance

Analyst lifts outlook for Huron Consulting Group following a solid quarterly performance and positive trends.

Healthcare Segment Growth

Healthcare was the star, with revenue growth y/y of 12% driven by strong demand in performance improvement and financial advisory.

Investment Opportunity

The $165 price target suggests the stock is undervalued compared to peers, offering an attractive investment opportunity.

Negative Factors

Commercial Segment Performance

Commercial segment underperformed in the quarter due to declines in strategy consulting, although a rebound is expected.

Digital Projects Timing

Huron’s practices are seeing heightened client demand and activity, with the only headwinds reflected in near-term timing of some digital projects.

Margin Decline

Commercial segment margin declined 460 bps to 17.8% due to higher compensation expense and contractor expenses.

Huron Consulting Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

Huron Consulting Group Inc. (HURN) is a global professional services firm that collaborates with clients to develop strategies, optimize operations, and drive transformative change. The company operates across various sectors, including healthcare, education, life sciences, and business services, offering expertise in strategy, technology, operations, and analytics. Huron's core services include consulting on business advisory, financial advisory, and operational improvement initiatives, helping organizations to navigate complex challenges and achieve sustainable growth.

How the Company Makes Money

Huron Consulting makes money primarily through the provision of consulting services, which is its main revenue stream. The company earns fees by engaging in projects with clients in diverse industries such as healthcare, education, and life sciences, where it provides strategic advice and solutions to improve performance and efficiency. Revenue is typically generated on a project basis, with fees depending on the scope and duration of each engagement. Additionally, Huron may have long-term contracts or retainer agreements with some clients, which provide a steady income. The company's earnings are further influenced by its ability to maintain strong client relationships and secure repeat business, as well as its investments in expanding service offerings and geographic reach.

Huron Consulting Financial Statement Overview

Summary

Huron Consulting demonstrates strong financial health with robust revenue and profit growth, efficient operating margins, and prudent financial management. The balance sheet reflects a significant reduction in leverage, enhancing financial stability. Strong cash flow generation supports the company's ability to fund operations and invest in growth. While the equity ratio indicates a slight area for improvement, the overall financial trajectory is positive, positioning the company well in the consulting industry.

Income Statement

Huron Consulting has demonstrated strong revenue growth with a consistent upward trajectory, particularly noteworthy with a TTM revenue of $1.56 billion, up from $1.52 billion annually. Gross profit margins have improved significantly to 49.37% from 31.28% last year, alongside a solid net profit margin of 7.88% in TTM, indicating effective cost management. The EBIT margin is stable at 10.74%, and EBITDA margin at 12.54% shows strong operating efficiency.

Balance Sheet

The company maintains a healthy balance sheet with a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11 in TTM, significantly reduced from 0.71 in the previous year, indicating improved leverage management. However, the equity ratio has slightly decreased to 36.25% from 41.77%, which suggests a need to increase equity levels relative to assets. Return on Equity (ROE) is robust at 24.91%, reflecting effective capital utilization.

Cash Flow

Cash flow analysis shows a strong operating cash flow to net income ratio of 1.83, indicating good cash generation relative to earnings. Free cash flow has grown to $199.58 million, with a free cash flow to net income ratio of 1.62, highlighting strong cash conversion. The free cash flow growth rate is commendable compared to prior periods, despite capital expenditure increases.

Breakdown
Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022	Dec 2021	Dec 2020
Income Statement		Total Revenue
1.52B	1.40B	1.16B	926.96M	871.01M
	Gross Profit
476.01M	419.29M	346.41M	268.81M	251.67M
	EBIT
168.82M	125.35M	99.76M	78.04M	131.53M
	EBITDA
204.66M	161.84M	154.19M	120.64M	12.82M
	Net Income Common Stockholders
116.63M	62.48M	75.55M	62.99M	-23.72M
Balance Sheet		Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments
21.91M	12.15M	11.83M	20.78M	67.18M
	Total Assets
1.34B	1.26B	1.20B	1.12B	1.06B
	Total Debt
398.61M	373.88M	346.09M	297.24M	273.88M
	Net Debt
376.70M	361.73M	334.25M	276.45M	206.70M
	Total Liabilities
782.29M	729.25M	647.00M	547.45M	505.53M
	Stockholders Equity
561.33M	532.89M	552.04M	571.90M	551.94M
Cash Flow		Free Cash Flow
192.67M	100.08M	61.10M	2.23M	120.34M
	Operating Cash Flow
201.32M	135.26M	85.40M	17.99M	136.74M
	Investing Cash Flow
-79.75M	-36.65M	-20.13M	-20.14M	-42.03M
	Financing Cash Flow
-111.64M	-98.33M	-74.11M	-44.41M	-39.62M

Huron Consulting Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Positive
• Last Price: 147.36
• 50DMA: Negative
• 100DMA: Positive
• 200DMA: Positive
• MACD: Positive
• RSI: Neutral
• STOCH: Neutral

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For HURN, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 147.36 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 139.13, above the 50-day MA of 141.79, and above the 200-day MA of 122.22, indicating a neutral trend. The MACD of -1.49 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 52.88 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 62.14 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for HURN.

Huron Consulting Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
BAH	78 Outperform	$13.78B	16.22	75.34%	1.74%	14.07%	116.33%
HURN	76 Outperform	$2.54B	22.11	24.88%	―	8.83%	92.48%
CRAI	75 Outperform	$1.13B	24.74	23.18%	1.09%	10.17%	24.74%
FCN	75 Outperform	$5.71B	22.73	12.46%	―	1.59%	-16.79%
ICFI	68 Neutral	$1.47B	13.72	11.64%	0.66%	2.88%	33.76%
Sector *	64 Neutral	$4.28B	11.80	5.30%	250.74%	4.12%	-9.02%
EXPO	62 Neutral	$3.90B	36.32	25.87%	1.46%	4.05%	8.71%