HLI Flags Rising Stress Among Smaller Private-Credit Borrowers

Houlihan Lokey reports rising private credit stress concentrated among smaller borrowers, with sub-$100M EBITDA companies posting 3% default rates by loan value. The $10M-$20M EBITDA segment shows the most weakness, with 12% of loans trading below 90% of par versus 1% in 2023. Larger borrowers remain healthier, and overall fundamentals remain supportive with median revenue growth of 6.5% and EBITDA growth of 7.4%.