Huron Consulting Group Inc. (HURN) Q2 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
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Overview
The earnings call highlights strong financial performance across segments, reaffirmed guidance, and record sales conversions, which are positive indicators. The Q&A session reveals improved visibility and confidence in overcoming temporary delays, though some responses lacked specific data. The market cap suggests moderate sensitivity to news. Overall, the combination of strong results, strategic acquisitions, and positive guidance adjustments suggests a positive stock price movement, likely in the range of 2% to 8% over the next two weeks.
Key Financial Performance
Revenues before reimbursable expenses (RBR) RBR for Q2 2025 was $402.5 million, up 8.3% from $371.7 million in Q2 2024. Organic RBR grew 4.2% year-over-year, driven by growth across all three operating segments. The increase reflects strong demand for services across healthcare, education, and commercial segments.
Healthcare segment RBR Healthcare segment RBR for Q2 2025 was $197.8 million, up 4.1% from Q2 2024. Excluding the divested Studer Education business, RBR grew 6% year-over-year. Growth was driven by strong demand for performance improvement, managed services, financial advisory, and strategy and innovation offerings, partially offset by a decrease in digital offerings.
Education segment RBR Education segment RBR for Q2 2025 was $129.3 million, up 5.3% from Q2 2024. Growth was driven by strong demand for strategy and operations offerings and increased demand for research software products. The segment achieved record RBR in the quarter.
Commercial segment RBR Commercial segment RBR for Q2 2025 was $75.4 million, up 28.2% from Q2 2024. Excluding the acquisition of AXIA, RBR grew 23% year-over-year. Growth was driven by strong demand for digital offerings and the incremental contribution from the AXIA acquisition.
Net income Net income for Q2 2025 was $19.4 million ($1.09 per diluted share), down from $37.5 million ($2.03 per diluted share) in Q2 2024. The decrease was due to an $8.2 million noncash impairment charge and the absence of an $11.1 million litigation settlement gain recorded in Q2 2024.
Adjusted EBITDA Adjusted EBITDA for Q2 2025 was $60.6 million (15.1% of RBR), up from $55.7 million (15% of RBR) in Q2 2024. The increase was driven by higher segment operating income across all three segments, partially offset by increased unallocated corporate expenses.
Adjusted net income Adjusted net income for Q2 2025 was $33.7 million ($1.89 per diluted share), up 12.5% from $18.5 million ($1.68 per diluted share) in Q2 2024. The increase reflects improved operating performance across segments.
Free cash flow Free cash flow for Q2 2025 was $73.7 million, driven by $80 million in cash flow from operations and $6.3 million in capital expenditures. The company expects full-year free cash flow to range between $160 million and $190 million.
Debt and leverage Total debt as of June 30, 2025, was $657.8 million, with net debt of $596.8 million. The leverage ratio was 2.5x adjusted EBITDA, compared to 2.2x in Q2 2024. The increase reflects share repurchases and acquisition payments during the quarter.
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Operating Highlights
Healthcare Segment RBR Growth: Second quarter RBR grew 4% over the prior year quarter, excluding divested student education results, growth was 6%. Growth driven by performance improvement, financial advisory, and strategy offerings.
Education Segment RBR Growth: Education segment RBR grew 5% in Q2 2025 over the prior year quarter, driven by strategy and operations offerings and increased demand for research software products.
Commercial Segment RBR Growth: Commercial segment RBR grew 28% over the prior year quarter, driven by the acquisition of AXIA and strong demand for digital offerings. Excluding AXIA, growth was 23%.
Healthcare Market Challenges: Legislation reducing federal healthcare spending by $1 trillion over the next decade, increasing uninsured population by 10 million, and reducing Medicaid funding.
Education Market Challenges: Uncertainty in taxation of endowment earnings, lower indirect reimbursement rates for research grants, reduced federal support, and declining enrollment numbers.
Commercial Market Expansion: Acquisition of Treliant to expand offerings in financial services, including risk management, compliance, and financial crimes expertise.
Acquisition of Eclipse Insights: Strengthens mid-revenue cycle expertise in healthcare, enhancing capabilities in charge capture optimization, clinical documentation, and revenue strategy.
Acquisition of Treliant: Expands commercial segment offerings in financial services, focusing on risk management, compliance, and fraud prevention.
Programmatic M&A Strategy: Focus on adding 2%-4% inorganic growth annually through acquisitions like Eclipse Insights and Treliant.
Digital Transformation Focus: Investments in digital capabilities across segments to drive operational efficiencies and client outcomes.
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Risk or Challenges
Healthcare Segment: The passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act is expected to reduce federal healthcare spending by over $1 trillion over the next decade, leading to cuts in Medicaid funding and an increase in uninsured patients (up to 10 million). This will result in higher uncompensated care costs for hospitals and reduced supplemental payments to healthcare providers, creating financial pressures for hospitals and health systems.
Digital Offerings in Healthcare: There is slower sales conversion in certain areas of the pipeline for larger digital transformation engagements, as clients prioritize immediate financial challenges over long-term digital investments.
Education Segment: Universities and research institutions face heightened regulatory uncertainty, potential reductions in federal financial aid, lower indirect reimbursement rates for research grants, reduced federal support for research, and anticipated declines in student enrollment. These factors could pressure tuition and government revenue sources.
Commercial Segment: Clients in the commercial segment are navigating a challenging macroeconomic environment, requiring operational efficiency and faster decision-making. However, the integration of recent acquisitions like Treliant may incur short-term costs and operational challenges.
Macroeconomic Environment: Broader macroeconomic uncertainties and market disruptions are creating challenges across all segments, including healthcare, education, and commercial sectors, impacting client priorities and spending behaviors.
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Guidance & Outlook
Revenue Guidance: Huron Consulting Group has increased its RBR guidance to a range of $1.64 billion to $1.68 billion for 2025, representing a 12% increase at the midpoint compared to 2024 results.
Adjusted EBITDA Margin: The company is maintaining its adjusted EBITDA margin guidance range of 14.0% to 14.5% of RBR for 2025.
Adjusted Non-GAAP EPS: Huron has increased its adjusted non-GAAP EPS guidance to a range of $7.30 to $7.70, representing a 16% increase at the midpoint compared to 2024.
Healthcare Segment Outlook: The Healthcare segment is expected to achieve upper single-digit percentage revenue growth for 2025, with operating margins projected in the range of 28% to 30%.
Education Segment Outlook: The Education segment is anticipated to achieve mid- to upper single-digit percentage revenue growth for 2025, with operating margins in the range of 23% to 25%.
Commercial Segment Outlook: The Commercial segment is projected to grow in the mid-20% range for 2025, with operating margins expected to be between 18% and 20%.
Acquisition Contributions: Recent acquisitions of Eclipse and Treliant are expected to collectively add approximately $20 million of RBR in the second half of 2025. These acquisitions are expected to be adjusted EPS accretive in 2026.
Market Trends and Client Demand: The company anticipates strong demand for its performance improvement, managed services, financial advisory, and strategy and innovation offerings, particularly in the Healthcare segment, driven by financial and operational pressures on clients.
Strategic Investments: Huron continues to focus on programmatic M&A strategy, targeting 2% to 4% inorganic growth annually, and is committed to sustainable margin expansion through pricing and efficiency initiatives.
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Shareholder Return Plan
Share Repurchase Program: In the second quarter, Huron Consulting Group used $61 million to repurchase approximately 430,000 shares, bringing the total year-to-date share repurchases to $133.9 million and approximately 938,000 shares, representing 5.3% of the common stock outstanding as of December 31, 2024. As of June 30, 2025, $131.3 million remained available for share repurchases under the current share repurchase authorization from the Board of Directors. Since December 31, 2021, the company has repurchased approximately 5.7 million shares under the share repurchase program, returning over $500 million of capital to shareholders.
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Key Q&A
Q:Is visibility better or worse than 3 or 6 months ago, and how does it relate to the conservatism of guidance?
A:Management stated that visibility is stronger now compared to earlier in the year, partly due to increased clarity around the regulatory environment and strong sales conversions. They noted that financial pressures on healthcare clients are driving demand for consulting services, and the pipeline has strengthened to record highs. In education, strong revenue execution and record sales conversions also contribute to improved visibility.
Q:Why is there confidence that slower sales conversions in digital transformation work in healthcare are temporary?
A:Management explained that the guidance for the year is not contingent on digital sales conversions. They see demand for digital offerings supporting performance improvement projects but noted slower cycles for standalone digital sales due to client financial pressures. They believe these projects will resume once clients achieve financial stability, making the slowdown temporary.
Q:What gives confidence that delays in pipeline conversion are temporary?
A:Management emphasized that delays are due to clients prioritizing financial stability over other projects. They noted that these delays are not a major issue and are part of long-term trends. They also highlighted a shift towards higher-margin consulting services and increased guidance for healthcare revenue growth, which supports their confidence.
Q:What is the impact of acquisitions on headcount growth, and what is the outlook for utilization and organic headcount growth?
A:Headcount growth was driven by managed services in healthcare and the Eclipse acquisition, which added about 40 team members. Management is aggressively hiring in consulting to support expected growth. Utilization rates are at the upper end of the range, and management expects them to cool slightly as new hires are onboarded.
Q:What is the status of acquisitions relative to annual goals, and is there more to come this year?
A:Management indicated progress in acquisitions, with potential for 1 or 2 more transactions by year-end. They are focused on tuck-in acquisitions that fill gaps and align with their balanced capital deployment strategy.
Q:Are current utilization rates in consulting and digital sustainable?
A:Management stated that current utilization rates (77% in consulting and 78% in digital) are at the upper end of the range. While they could flex higher in individual quarters, they expect rates to cool as they add new team members to support growth.
Q:What drove record sales conversions in the Education segment, and what areas are seeing the most momentum?
A:Record sales conversions were driven by strategy and operations offerings, particularly in areas like technology investments, student enrollment, risk reduction, research efficacy, and fundraising. These services address financial strain and operational disruption in the education sector.
Q:What is the impact of healthcare consolidation on the business?
A:Management noted that healthcare consolidation is ongoing and contributes to their business. They assist clients with strategic evaluations and post-merger integration, which are elements of their broader market activities.
Q:How does the company help healthcare clients adapt to constrained Medicaid funding and a surge in the uninsured population?
A:The company offers comprehensive performance improvement services, including revenue cycle, supply chain, workforce setup, and clinical operations. They also provide financial advisory services to improve decision-making and cash management. Their depth, breadth, and track record of results make them well-positioned to assist clients.
Q:What does the Treliant acquisition bring to the company?
A:The Treliant acquisition expands the company's capabilities in risk management and compliance, complementing their existing financial services offerings. The acquisition creates opportunities for more comprehensive solutions and aligns well with their current portfolio.
Q:Review of Unclear Management Responses
A:Management avoided directly addressing whether current utilization rates could be sustained long-term, instead focusing on the expectation that rates would cool as new hires are onboarded. Additionally, while they expressed confidence in the temporary nature of delays in digital sales conversions and pipeline conversion, their responses lacked specific data or examples to substantiate these claims.
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Earnings Word Cloud
The most frequently occurring keywords in this quarter's earning call
Inc Research
LLC Research
Medicaid
RBR demand
RBR increase
RBR segment
Research Division
Treliant
acquisition AXIA
advisory offering
breadth capability
clarity
client environment
decade
decline
disruption
documentation
environment client
experience
focus
fundraising
health care
hospital health
increase midpoint
industry expertise
landscape
legislation
offering education
offering health
offering market
parallel
patient
portfolio client
reduction
reimbursement rate
research grant
risk
scenario
segment RBR
software product
spending health
track record
HURN Transcript
Huron Consulting Group Inc. (HURN) Q3 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
Positive10-29
The earnings call presents strong financial performance with increased revenue, net income, and adjusted EBITDA. The guidance is optimistic, with anticipated growth across segments and strategic acquisitions. The Q&A section reveals positive sentiment from analysts, highlighting strong demand and effective management strategies. Although management avoided specific guidance for 2026, the overall outlook remains positive. Given the company's market cap, a positive stock price movement of 2% to 8% is likely over the next two weeks.
Huron Consulting Group Inc. (HURN) Q2 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
Positive8-1
The earnings call highlights strong financial performance across segments, reaffirmed guidance, and record sales conversions, which are positive indicators. The Q&A session reveals improved visibility and confidence in overcoming temporary delays, though some responses lacked specific data. The market cap suggests moderate sensitivity to news. Overall, the combination of strong results, strategic acquisitions, and positive guidance adjustments suggests a positive stock price movement, likely in the range of 2% to 8% over the next two weeks.
Huron Consulting Group Inc. (HURN) Q1 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
Positive4-29
The earnings call revealed strong financial performance with record revenue growth and improved margins. Despite some concerns in the Q&A about strategy consulting and macroeconomic impacts, the overall sentiment remains positive due to strong guidance, a decrease in leverage ratio, and increased demand across segments. The market cap suggests a moderate reaction, leading to a prediction of a 2% to 8% stock price increase.
Huron Consulting Group Inc. (HURN) Q4 2024 Earnings Call Transcript
Positive2-25
The earnings report shows strong financial performance with record revenue and net income growth, improved margins, and significant share repurchases. The Q&A session addresses potential risks like regulatory impacts and higher medical costs, but management remains optimistic about growth, particularly in digital and healthcare sectors. Despite some uncertainties, the positive guidance and strategic focus on expansion suggest a positive outlook. Given the company's small market cap, the stock is likely to react positively, with a potential increase of 2% to 8% over the next two weeks.
HURN Report
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