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Side-by-side financial comparison of FEDERAL SIGNAL CORP (FSS) and HOULIHAN LOKEY, INC. (HLI). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

HOULIHAN LOKEY, INC. is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($717.1M vs $597.1M, roughly 1.2× FEDERAL SIGNAL CORP). HOULIHAN LOKEY, INC. runs the higher net margin — 16.3% vs 10.2%, a 6.1% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, FEDERAL SIGNAL CORP posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (26.5% vs 13.0%). HOULIHAN LOKEY, INC. produced more free cash flow last quarter ($217.0M vs $89.5M). Over the past eight quarters, FEDERAL SIGNAL CORP's revenue compounded faster (18.5% CAGR vs 17.4%).

The Federal Signal Company was an American manufacturer of railway signaling equipment in the early 20th century. It was located in Albany, New York.

Houlihan Lokey, Inc. is an American multinational independent investment bank and financial services company. Houlihan Lokey was founded in 1972 and is headquartered at Constellation Place in Century City, Los Angeles, California. The firm advises large public and closely held companies as well as institutions and governments. Its main service lines include mergers and acquisitions, capital solutions, restructuring and distressed M&A, fairness opinions, and financial and valuation advisory. A...

FSS vs HLI — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
HLI
HLI
1.2× larger
HLI
$717.1M
$597.1M
FSS
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
FSS
FSS
+13.5% gap
FSS
26.5%
13.0%
HLI
Higher net margin
HLI
HLI
6.1% more per $
HLI
16.3%
10.2%
FSS
More free cash flow
HLI
HLI
$127.5M more FCF
HLI
$217.0M
$89.5M
FSS
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
FSS
FSS
Annualised
FSS
18.5%
17.4%
HLI

Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q3 FY2026

Metric
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Revenue
$597.1M
$717.1M
Net Profit
$60.8M
$116.5M
Gross Margin
28.4%
32.2%
Operating Margin
14.0%
22.4%
Net Margin
10.2%
16.3%
Revenue YoY
26.5%
13.0%
Net Profit YoY
21.6%
22.3%
EPS (diluted)
$0.99
$1.70

Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.

8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend

Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.

Revenue
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
$597.1M
$717.1M
Q3 25
$555.0M
$659.5M
Q2 25
$564.6M
$605.3M
Q1 25
$463.8M
$666.4M
Q4 24
$472.0M
$634.4M
Q3 24
$474.2M
$575.0M
Q2 24
$490.4M
$513.6M
Q1 24
$424.9M
$520.5M
Net Profit
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
$60.8M
$116.5M
Q3 25
$68.1M
$111.8M
Q2 25
$71.4M
$97.5M
Q1 25
$46.3M
$121.9M
Q4 24
$50.0M
$95.3M
Q3 24
$53.9M
$93.5M
Q2 24
$60.8M
$88.9M
Q1 24
$51.6M
$81.1M
Gross Margin
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
28.4%
32.2%
Q3 25
29.1%
33.8%
Q2 25
30.0%
31.0%
Q1 25
28.2%
33.9%
Q4 24
28.1%
31.4%
Q3 24
29.6%
33.0%
Q2 24
29.4%
30.6%
Q1 24
27.3%
30.3%
Operating Margin
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
14.0%
22.4%
Q3 25
16.9%
22.9%
Q2 25
17.3%
14.8%
Q1 25
14.2%
20.9%
Q4 24
14.9%
21.5%
Q3 24
16.0%
22.7%
Q2 24
16.5%
18.6%
Q1 24
12.8%
19.7%
Net Margin
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
10.2%
16.3%
Q3 25
12.3%
17.0%
Q2 25
12.6%
16.1%
Q1 25
10.0%
18.3%
Q4 24
10.6%
15.0%
Q3 24
11.4%
16.3%
Q2 24
12.4%
17.3%
Q1 24
12.1%
15.6%
EPS (diluted)
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
$0.99
$1.70
Q3 25
$1.11
$1.63
Q2 25
$1.16
$1.42
Q1 25
$0.75
$1.76
Q4 24
$0.80
$1.39
Q3 24
$0.87
$1.37
Q2 24
$0.99
$1.30
Q1 24
$0.84
$1.18

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.

Metric
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$63.7M
$1.1B
Total DebtLower is stronger
$564.6M
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$1.4B
$2.3B
Total Assets
$2.4B
$3.9B
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage
0.41×

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
$63.7M
$1.1B
Q3 25
$54.4M
$923.6M
Q2 25
$64.7M
$793.8M
Q1 25
$57.5M
$971.0M
Q4 24
$91.1M
$799.3M
Q3 24
$73.7M
$691.4M
Q2 24
$48.6M
$449.7M
Q1 24
$48.9M
$721.2M
Total Debt
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
$564.6M
Q3 25
$201.2M
Q2 25
$258.3M
Q1 25
$266.9M
Q4 24
$204.4M
Q3 24
$223.3M
Q2 24
$248.8M
Q1 24
$266.8M
Stockholders' Equity
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
$1.4B
$2.3B
Q3 25
$1.3B
$2.2B
Q2 25
$1.3B
$2.2B
Q1 25
$1.2B
$2.2B
Q4 24
$1.2B
$2.1B
Q3 24
$1.1B
$2.0B
Q2 24
$1.1B
$1.8B
Q1 24
$1.0B
$1.8B
Total Assets
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
$2.4B
$3.9B
Q3 25
$1.9B
$3.8B
Q2 25
$1.9B
$3.5B
Q1 25
$1.9B
$3.8B
Q4 24
$1.8B
$3.5B
Q3 24
$1.7B
$3.2B
Q2 24
$1.7B
$2.9B
Q1 24
$1.7B
$3.2B
Debt / Equity
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
0.41×
Q3 25
0.15×
Q2 25
0.20×
Q1 25
0.22×
Q4 24
0.17×
Q3 24
0.19×
Q2 24
0.23×
Q1 24
0.26×

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.

Metric
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$97.2M
$217.7M
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
$89.5M
$217.0M
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
15.0%
30.3%
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
1.3%
0.1%
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
1.60×
1.87×
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters
$227.1M
$738.9M

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
$97.2M
$217.7M
Q3 25
$61.1M
$325.0M
Q2 25
$59.7M
$-131.6M
Q1 25
$36.7M
$358.4M
Q4 24
$90.6M
$265.5M
Q3 24
$68.8M
$289.2M
Q2 24
$40.6M
$-64.5M
Q1 24
$31.3M
$225.3M
Free Cash Flow
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
$89.5M
$217.0M
Q3 25
$54.1M
$322.8M
Q2 25
$52.4M
$-144.8M
Q1 25
$31.1M
$343.9M
Q4 24
$82.1M
$261.7M
Q3 24
$60.9M
$278.7M
Q2 24
$24.8M
$-75.4M
Q1 24
$22.9M
$213.1M
FCF Margin
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
15.0%
30.3%
Q3 25
9.7%
49.0%
Q2 25
9.3%
-23.9%
Q1 25
6.7%
51.6%
Q4 24
17.4%
41.2%
Q3 24
12.8%
48.5%
Q2 24
5.1%
-14.7%
Q1 24
5.4%
40.9%
Capex Intensity
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
1.3%
0.1%
Q3 25
1.3%
0.3%
Q2 25
1.3%
2.2%
Q1 25
1.2%
2.2%
Q4 24
1.8%
0.6%
Q3 24
1.7%
1.8%
Q2 24
3.2%
2.1%
Q1 24
2.0%
2.3%
Cash Conversion
FSS
FSS
HLI
HLI
Q4 25
1.60×
1.87×
Q3 25
0.90×
2.91×
Q2 25
0.84×
-1.35×
Q1 25
0.79×
2.94×
Q4 24
1.81×
2.79×
Q3 24
1.28×
3.09×
Q2 24
0.67×
-0.73×
Q1 24
0.61×
2.78×

Financial Flow Comparison

Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.

Revenue Breakdown by Segment

FSS
FSS

Vehiclesandequipment$403.4M68%
Parts$66.8M11%
Publicsafetyandsecurityequipment$62.2M10%
Rentalincome$19.0M3%
Industrialsignalingequipment$18.2M3%
Other$14.9M2%
Warningsystems$12.6M2%

HLI
HLI

Corporate Finance$473.7M66%
Financial Restructuring$156.3M22%
Financial Advisory Services$87.1M12%

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