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EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS
 6 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2024
Share-Based Payment Arrangement [Abstract]  
EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS Employee Benefit Plans
Defined Contribution Plans
The Company sponsors a 401(k) defined contribution savings plan for its domestic employees and defined contribution retirement plans for its international employees. The Company contributed approximately $3,361 and $3,083 to these plans during the three months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, and $6,406 and $6,112 during the six months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
Share-Based Incentive Plans
Awards of restricted shares and restricted stock units have been and will be made under the Amended and Restated Houlihan Lokey, Inc. 2016 Incentive Award Plan (the "2016 Incentive Plan"), which became effective in August 2015 and was amended in October 2017. Under the 2016 Incentive Plan, it is anticipated that the Company will continue to grant cash and equity-based incentive awards to eligible service providers in order to attract, motivate and retain the talent necessary to operate the Company's business. Equity-based incentive awards issued under the 2016 Incentive Plan generally vest over a four-year period. Restricted shares of Class A common stock were granted under the 2016 Incentive Plan to (i) six independent directors in the first quarter of the fiscal year ended March 31, 2024, at $87.60 per share and (ii) six independent directors in the first quarter of the fiscal year ending March 31, 2025, at $134.08 per share.
No excess tax benefit was recognized during the three months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023. An excess tax benefit of $21,921 and $7,299 was recognized during the six months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, as a component of the provision for income taxes and an operating activity on the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows. The excess tax benefits recognized during the six months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 were related to shares vested in May 2024 and May 2023, respectively.
The share awards are classified as equity awards at the time of grant unless the number of shares granted is unknown. Awards that are settleable in shares based upon a future determinable stock price are classified as liabilities until the price is established and the resulting number of shares is known, at which time they are re-classified from liabilities to equity awards. Activity in equity-classified share awards which relate to the 2016 Incentive Plan during the six months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 was as follows:
Unvested Share AwardsShares
Weighted Average
Grant Date
Fair Value
Balance, April 1, 20244,519,024 $83.37 
Granted940,701 134.20 
Vested(1,614,779)80.24 
Forfeited/Repurchased(181,369)88.78 
Balance, September 30, 20243,663,577 $97.54 
Balance, April 1, 20235,281,779 $79.57 
Granted1,244,902 87.60 
Vested(1,636,778)74.23 
Forfeited/Repurchased(306,521)84.30 
Balance, September 30, 20234,583,382 $83.34 
Activity in liability-classified share awards during the six months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 was as follows:
Awards Settleable in SharesFair Value
Balance, April 1, 2024$17,184 
Offer to grant1,659 
Share price determined-converted to cash payments(5)
Share price determined-transferred to equity grants(7,265)
Forfeited(317)
Balance, September 30, 2024$11,256 
Balance, April 1, 2023$11,971 
Offer to grant9,112 
Share price determined-converted to cash payments(3)
Share price determined-transferred to equity grants(6,172)
Forfeited— 
Balance, September 30, 2023$14,908 
Activity in Restricted Stock Unit awards during the six months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 was as follows:
Restricted Stock UnitsRSUs
Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value
RSUs as of April 1, 2024843,730 $95.09 
Issued68,601 134.08 
Forfeitures(24,453)94.62 
Vested(269,614)94.71 
RSUs as of September 30, 2024618,264 $99.60 
RSUs as of April 1, 20231,050,646 $95.46 
Issued94,286 87.60 
Forfeitures(19,070)90.91 
Vested(266,883)94.38 
RSUs as of September 30, 2023858,979 $95.02 

Compensation expenses for the Company associated with both equity-classified and liability-classified awards totaled $45,325 and $42,740 for the three months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, and $78,396 and $82,149 for the six months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively.

As of September 30, 2024 and 2023, there was $418,918 and $463,603, respectively, of total unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested share awards granted under the 2016 Incentive Plan. These costs are recognized over a weighted average period of 1.4 years and 3.4 years, as of September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively.

On October 19, 2017, our board of directors approved an amendment (the “Amendment”) to the 2016 Incentive Plan reducing the number of shares of common stock available for issuance under the 2016 Incentive Plan by approximately 12.2 million shares. Under the Amendment, the aggregate number of shares of common stock that are available for issuance under awards granted pursuant to the 2016 Incentive Plan is equal to the sum of (i) 8.0 million and (ii) any shares of our Class B common stock that are subject to awards under our 2006 Incentive Plan that terminate, expire or lapse for any reason after October 19, 2017.

The number of shares available for issuance increases annually beginning on April 1, 2018 and ending on April 1, 2025, by an amount equal to the lowest of:

•6,540,659 shares of our Class A common stock and Class B common stock;
•Six percent of the shares of Class A common stock and Class B common stock outstanding on the final day of the immediately preceding fiscal year; and
•such smaller number of shares as determined by our board of directors.