Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eight research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $19.2917.

HTGC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Hercules Capital from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Hercules Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 20th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Hercules Capital from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Lucid Cap Mkts raised shares of Hercules Capital to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded shares of Hercules Capital from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $20.50 to $17.50 in a research note on Friday, February 13th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hercules Capital news, Director Thomas J. Fallon acquired 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $15.88 per share, for a total transaction of $317,600.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 120,369 shares in the company, valued at $1,911,459.72. This trade represents a 19.93% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gayle A. Crowell acquired 6,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $15.20 per share, for a total transaction of $100,320.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 87,458 shares in the company, valued at $1,329,361.60. The trade was a 8.16% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 117,015 shares of company stock valued at $1,749,620. Insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hercules Capital

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HTGC. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of Hercules Capital in the third quarter worth $11,199,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its holdings in Hercules Capital by 425.6% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 580,414 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,610,000 after acquiring an additional 469,989 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG grew its holdings in Hercules Capital by 26.8% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,671,860 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,464,000 after acquiring an additional 353,092 shares in the last quarter. Muzinich & Co. Inc. increased its position in shares of Hercules Capital by 34.5% in the 4th quarter. Muzinich & Co. Inc. now owns 1,335,787 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,140,000 after purchasing an additional 342,967 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HRT Financial LP increased its position in shares of Hercules Capital by 100.9% in the 2nd quarter. HRT Financial LP now owns 558,010 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,200,000 after purchasing an additional 280,198 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 19.69% of the company’s stock.

Hercules Capital Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of HTGC opened at $14.87 on Friday. Hercules Capital has a 12 month low of $13.77 and a 12 month high of $19.67. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $17.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $18.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.48. The stock has a market cap of $2.73 billion, a PE ratio of 8.13 and a beta of 0.87.

Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC) last posted 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. The business had revenue of $133.25 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $141.57 million. Hercules Capital had a return on equity of 15.97% and a net margin of 63.80%.During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.49 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Hercules Capital will post 1.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hercules Capital Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th were given a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 25th. Hercules Capital’s payout ratio is presently 87.43%.

Hercules Capital Company Profile

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.