Apollon Wealth Management LLC Raises Stock Position in Hercules Capital, Inc. $HTGC

Apollon Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC) by 680.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 151,796 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 132,351 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Hercules Capital were worth $2,242,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of HTGC. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Hercules Capital by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,647,184 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $68,969,000 after acquiring an additional 28,757 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in Hercules Capital by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 1,823,405 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,316,000 after acquiring an additional 29,292 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG boosted its stake in Hercules Capital by 26.8% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,671,860 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,464,000 after acquiring an additional 353,092 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in shares of Hercules Capital by 17.9% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,382,084 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,004,000 after purchasing an additional 209,854 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Muzinich & Co. Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hercules Capital by 34.5% during the fourth 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. 19.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hercules Capital Stock Performance

NYSE HTGC opened at $15.94 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.00 and a beta of 0.79. The business’s 50 day moving average is $15.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $16.23. Hercules Capital, Inc. has a 12-month low of $13.70 and a 12-month high of $19.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.89, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

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

Hercules Capital Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on HTGC shares. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Hercules Capital from $16.50 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Hercules Capital from $15.00 to $15.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Hercules Capital from $19.00 to $18.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Citizens Jmp reduced their price target on shares of Hercules Capital from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hercules Capital in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $18.21.

Hercules Capital 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.