Start here if you're new
what it is
Huron helps hospitals, schools, and other institutions fix operations, follow rules, and use technology.
how it gets paid
Last year Huron Consulting made $1.7B in revenue. Healthcare was the main engine at $0.87B, or 51% of sales.
why it's growing
Revenue grew 11.7% last year. Healthcare is typically not a discretionary expense, so we expect demand to continue to grow as providers deal with an aging population and regulatory requirements.
what just happened
Huron posted $2.17 EPS, topping the $1.93 estimate by 12.44%.
At a glance
B+ balance sheet — decent shape, but not bulletproof
80/100 earnings predictability — you can trust these numbers
22.7x trailing p/e — priced about right
18.5% return on capital — nothing to write home about
xvary composite: 58/100 — below average
What they do
Huron helps hospitals, schools, and other institutions fix operations, follow rules, and use technology.
Healthcare is 51% of 2024 revenue. Education is 32%. Commercial is 17%. You are buying a specialist stack, not a grab bag. Return on capital is 18.5%, so the business turns money into profit instead of just into PowerPoints.
How they make money
$1.7B
annual revenue · their business grew +11.7% last year
Healthcare
$0.87B
Education
$0.54B
Commercial
$0.29B
The products that matter
advises hospitals and health systems
Healthcare Consulting
part of a $1.7B business
segment revenue is not broken out on this page. what you do know is that healthcare sits inside the same $1.7B consulting platform that grew 11.7% last year.
core vertical
serves colleges and universities
Education Consulting
part of a $1.7B business
this adds diversification across end markets, but the hard numbers here are still company-wide: $1.7B in revenue and a 14.5% operating margin.
institutional demand
works with corporate clients
Commercial Consulting
part of a $1.7B business
commercial work gives you another spending bucket, but it runs through the same people model that produced $7.60 in full-year EPS. If budgets tighten here, the mix does not save the whole story.
cyclical exposure
Key numbers
83%
defensive base
83% of revenue comes from defensive industries. That is why Huron can keep selling when budgets get weird.
18.5%
return on capital
Return on capital means profit on money tied up in the business. At 18.5%, Huron turns each dollar into real operating profit.
22.7x
trailing p/e
You are paying 22.7 times trailing earnings for a firm with 13.0% projected earnings growth. That is not cheap.
$590M
long-term debt
Long-term debt is $590M, or 16% of capital. The balance sheet is B+, so leverage is present without being ugly.
Financial health
B+
strength
- balance sheet grade B+ — solid but not elite
- risk rank 3 — safer than 50% of stocks
- price stability 65 / 100
- long-term debt $590M (16% of capital)
- net profit margin 7.7% — keeps 8 cents of every dollar in revenue
- return on equity 30% — $0.30 profit for every $1 investors have put in
B+ — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
You invested $10,000 in HURN 3 years ago → it's now worth $24,740.
The index would have given you $13,880.
source: institutional data · total return
What just happened
beat estimates
Huron posted $2.17 EPS, topping the $1.93 estimate by 12.44%.
Revenue was $432.3M, up 10.7% vs. prior year. Gross margin came in at 32.5%, and the quarter showed Huron can beat profit even when the market is nervous about growth.
$432.3M
revenue
$2.17
eps
32.5%
gross margin
the number that mattered
The $2.17 EPS print mattered most. It beat $1.93 by $0.24, which is a clean profit beat in a stock people are paying up for.
-
we think huron consulting can generate earnings growth even in an uncertain economic environment.recent data have shown that consumer confidence is as pessimistic as it was during the covid pandemic.
-
however, huron derives 83% of its revenues from what we consider to be defensive industries.
-
healthcare accounts for just over half of the top line.
-
in this sector, the company helps customers with the conversion to electronic health records, customer relationship management, and growth strategies, among other services.healthcare is typically not a discretionary expense, so we expect demand to continue to grow as providers deal with an aging population and regulatory requirements.
-
education is huron's other major segment.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the #1 risk is client budget pullbacks across healthcare systems, universities, and commercial advisory work.
high
all $1.7B of revenue depends on clients saying yes to projects
huron sells billable work, not subscription contracts. if hospital systems, universities, or corporate clients delay projects, demand can soften fast while compensation costs stay in place.
this risk reaches the full $1.7B revenue base.
med
the asset walks out the door every evening
consulting firms keep clients by keeping talent. if senior teams leave, you can lose both billable capacity and the relationships attached to it.
with a 14.5% operating margin, there is room for error. there is not endless room.
med
$590M of debt is fine until growth loses momentum
the balance sheet looks workable in a normal backdrop. it matters more if project flow slows at the same time cash generation does.
debt is 16% of capital. not alarming. not invisible.
low
the shareholder base has already cooled
two straight quarters of net institutional selling do not damage the business. they do remove some support for the stock if results get less clean.
3q2025 showed 120 buyers against 182 sellers.
if client budgets tighten, you are not debating a side segment. the full $1.7B revenue base is tied to outside organizations continuing to spend on advice.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
metric
fy2026 EPS estimate
$8.70 is the number carrying the valuation. if that estimate starts moving down, the stock loses the benefit of the doubt fast.
trend
institutional flow
two straight quarters of net selling is the quiet warning sign. a turn back to net buying would tell you the holder base sees a cleaner setup.
calendar
next quarterly report
watch whether EPS builds again from the $1.68–$2.10 range seen last year, or whether q4's step down to $1.93 turns into a pattern.
risk
client spending tone
healthcare, education, and commercial clients do not all slow at once. if more than one bucket starts hesitating together, you should care.
Analyst rankings
short-term outlook
average
momentum score 3. in human-speak, analysts do not see a strong short-term edge either way.
risk profile
average
stability score 3 means this sits near the middle of the pack on risk. not fragile. not defensive.
chart momentum
average
technical score 3 means the chart is behaving like a normal stock, not sending a loud signal.
earnings predictability
80 / 100
management's numbers are relatively dependable. for a consulting firm, that matters more than story-stock drama.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutions have been net selling for 2 consecutive quarters — 120 buyers vs. 182 sellers in 3q2025. total institutional holdings: 17.7M shares. net selling for 2 quarters.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
$138
$272
$172
current price
$205
target midpoint · +19% from current · 3-5yr high: $305 (+75% · 15% ann'l return)
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