Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Hercules Capital received a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating from eight brokerages: four buys, one strong buy and three holds. Analysts’ average 12-month price target is $18.46, versus a recent share price of $17.46.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of $0.50, exceeding the $0.48 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 8.4% year over year to $134.4 million but fell short of expectations.
• Hercules Capital increased its quarterly dividend to $0.40 per share, representing an annualized payout of $1.60 and a dividend yield of approximately 9.2%.

Shares of Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the eight brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $18.4643.

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reduced their target price on Hercules Capital from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Hercules Capital in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Hercules Capital from $15.00 to $15.50 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Hercules Capital from $16.50 to $17.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hercules Capital

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in Hercules Capital during the second quarter worth about $26,523,000. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hercules Capital in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $14,573,000. Advisors Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hercules Capital during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $14,501,000. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in shares of Hercules Capital by 22.6% during the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,877,634 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $61,150,000 after buying an additional 713,653 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its position in shares of Hercules Capital by 25.1% during the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 3,382,058 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $49,243,000 after buying an additional 678,783 shares during the period. 19.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hercules Capital Stock Performance

NYSE:HTGC opened at $17.46 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.27 billion, a PE ratio of 8.69 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 1.37. Hercules Capital has a fifty-two week low of $13.70 and a fifty-two week high of $19.62.

Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.02. Hercules Capital had a return on equity of 16.01% and a net margin of 67.68%.The firm had revenue of $134.41 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $146.71 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.50 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Hercules Capital will post 1.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Hercules Capital Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 11th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This is a positive change from Hercules Capital's previous quarterly dividend of $0.07. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 11th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.2%. Hercules Capital's dividend payout ratio is presently 79.60%.

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.

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