Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC) Short Interest Up 52.4% in February

Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 8,110,923 shares, a growth of 52.4% from the January 29th total of 5,320,833 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,702,662 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days. Approximately 4.5% of the shares of the company are short sold. Approximately 4.5% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,702,662 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HTGC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Hercules Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Hercules Capital from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Hercules Capital from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Hercules Capital from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded Hercules Capital from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $20.50 to $17.50 in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $19.29.

Trending Headlines about Hercules Capital

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Nikos Theodosopoulos bought 2,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $14.21 per share, with a total value of $36,946.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 21,523 shares in the company, valued at $305,841.83. This trade represents a 13.74% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert P. Badavas purchased 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $14.27 per share, for a total transaction of $71,350.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 122,073 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,741,981.71. This represents a 4.27% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders acquired 113,965 shares of company stock valued at $1,704,541 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hercules Capital

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in Hercules Capital by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 17,241 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $331,000 after purchasing an additional 959 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in Hercules Capital by 85.9% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 22,854 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $439,000 after acquiring an additional 10,559 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth grew its position in Hercules Capital by 26.0% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 15,747 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $302,000 after acquiring an additional 3,250 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its stake in Hercules Capital by 79.6% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,381 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 612 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd raised its position in Hercules Capital by 210.4% in the second quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 97,439 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,781,000 after purchasing an additional 66,043 shares during the period. 19.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hercules Capital Stock Down 7.9%

HTGC stock opened at $14.22 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $17.64 and a two-hundred day moving average of $18.17. Hercules Capital has a 12 month low of $14.10 and a 12 month high of $21.14. The company has a market cap of $2.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.77 and a beta of 0.84.

Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.48. Hercules Capital had a return on equity of 15.97% and a net margin of 63.80%.The business had revenue of $133.25 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $141.57 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.49 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Hercules Capital will post 1.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hercules Capital Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be paid a $0.07 dividend. 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%.

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.