Traders Buy Large Volume of Put Options on Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC)

Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Investors acquired 28,062 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 1,224% compared to the average daily volume of 2,119 put options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HTGC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Piper Sandler cut shares of Hercules Capital from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $20.50 to $17.50 in a report on Friday, February 13th. Lucid Cap Mkts upgraded shares of Hercules Capital to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Weiss Ratings lowered Hercules Capital from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Capital One Financial set a $19.75 price target on shares of Hercules Capital in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Hercules Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $19.29.

More Hercules Capital News

Here are the key news stories impacting Hercules Capital this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple insiders (CEO Scott Bluestein, CFO Seth Meyer and several directors) bought stock this week — collectively over ~46,000 shares — signaling management confidence at current levels. See the CEO’s SEC filing for details. CEO SEC Filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts have modestly lowered fair-value estimates and price targets (examples: consolidated fair value trimmed from ~$21.22 to ~$20.31; several firms trimmed targets and ratings), a recalibration rather than a wholesale downgrade of the thesis. Analyst Note
• Negative Sentiment: Unusual bearish options flow — investors bought ~28,062 put contracts (a >1,200% jump vs typical daily put volume) — a strong short-term bearish signal that can amplify downward pressure.
• Negative Sentiment: Hercules cut its quarterly dividend to $0.07 (annualized $0.28), reducing income appeal for yield‑seeking investors and increasing concern about payout sustainability (payout ratio ~87%). See company data and dividend details. MarketBeat HTGC
• Negative Sentiment: Recent analyst downgrades and price‑target cuts (Wells Fargo, Keefe Bruyette & Woods, Piper Sandler and others) have pressured sentiment and likely contributed to selling. Analyst Coverage

Hercules Capital Stock Performance

Shares of HTGC opened at $14.22 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.61 billion, a PE ratio of 7.77 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 1.48. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $17.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.17. Hercules Capital has a 52 week low of $14.10 and a 52 week high of $21.14.

Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48. Hercules Capital had a net margin of 63.80% and a return on equity of 15.97%. The company had revenue of $133.25 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $141.57 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.49 EPS. Research analysts expect that Hercules Capital will post 1.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hercules Capital Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.07 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 25th. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Hercules Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 87.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hercules Capital news, Director Nikos Theodosopoulos bought 6,165 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $15.93 per share, with a total value of $98,208.45. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 18,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $301,443.39. This trade represents a 48.32% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Thomas J. Fallon purchased 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $15.88 per share, with a total value of $317,600.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 120,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,911,459.72. This represents a 19.93% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders bought a total of 113,965 shares of company stock worth $1,704,541 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hercules Capital

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CWM LLC lifted its stake in Hercules Capital by 79.6% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,381 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 612 shares during the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. raised its holdings in shares of Hercules Capital by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 24,354 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $458,000 after purchasing an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hercules Capital by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 37,819 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $715,000 after purchasing an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in Hercules Capital by 11.4% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 6,652 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $126,000 after purchasing an additional 680 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its position in Hercules Capital by 0.5% during the second quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 143,346 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,620,000 after buying an additional 697 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 19.69% of the company’s stock.

About Hercules Capital

Hercules Capital, Inc is a specialty finance company organized as a business development company (BDC) that provides tailored debt financing solutions to high‐growth companies. Through its external management structure, Hercules Capital extends senior secured loans, subordinated debt and growth capital designed to support research and development, expansion initiatives and working capital needs. The firm primarily partners with venture capital and private equity sponsors to finance innovative enterprises across various developmental stages.

The company’s investment portfolio is concentrated in technology, life sciences and sustainable and renewable technology sectors, reflecting its focus on industries with strong growth prospects and recurring capital requirements.