Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $18.2083.

HTGC has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Hercules Capital from $15.00 to $15.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Hercules Capital from $16.50 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Hercules Capital from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Citizens Jmp dropped their price objective on shares of Hercules Capital from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Hercules Capital from $19.00 to $18.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 16th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC purchased a new position in Hercules Capital during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Caitlin John LLC bought a new position in shares of Hercules Capital during the third quarter valued at $29,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hercules Capital in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in shares of Hercules Capital by 113.1% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,884 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC boosted its stake in Hercules Capital by 233.3% in the 4th quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,400 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 19.69% of the company’s stock.

Hercules Capital Stock Down 0.2%

HTGC stock opened at $15.47 on Tuesday. Hercules Capital has a fifty-two week low of $13.70 and a fifty-two week high of $19.67. The company has a market capitalization of $2.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.74 and a beta of 0.80. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $15.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $16.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a current ratio of 1.89.

Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.01. Hercules Capital had a return on equity of 16.05% and a net margin of 59.85%.The company had revenue of $134.94 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $141.39 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.45 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Hercules Capital will post 1.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hercules Capital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were given a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. Hercules Capital’s payout ratio is currently 90.40%.

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.