Sound Income Strategies LLC Purchases 110,177 Shares of Hercules Capital, Inc. $HTGC

Key Points

• Sound Income Strategies increased its Hercules Capital stake by 3%, purchasing 110,177 shares to own 3,777,695 shares valued at approximately $62.5 million, or 2.02% of HTGC.
• Hercules Capital reported quarterly EPS of $0.50, exceeding estimates of $0.48, while revenue rose 8.4% year over year to $134.41 million. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.40 per share, representing a 9.7% annualized yield.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with HTGC carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $18.89, compared with its recent price of $16.52.

Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its position in Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC - Free Report) by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,777,695 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 110,177 shares during the period. Hercules Capital accounts for approximately 1.4% of Sound Income Strategies LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Sound Income Strategies LLC owned 2.02% of Hercules Capital worth $62,521,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in HTGC. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Hercules Capital during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,523,000. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Hercules Capital in the second quarter worth approximately $14,573,000. Advisors Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hercules Capital during the second quarter worth $14,501,000. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in Hercules Capital by 22.6% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,877,634 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $61,150,000 after acquiring an additional 713,653 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Melia Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Hercules Capital in the second quarter valued at $8,735,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 19.69% of the company's stock.

Hercules Capital Trading Down 0.2%

Hercules Capital stock traded down $0.04 during trading on Friday, hitting $16.52. The company had a trading volume of 817,871 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,925,840. Hercules Capital, Inc. has a 1-year low of $13.70 and a 1-year high of $19.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $17.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $16.10. The stock has a market cap of $3.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.22 and a beta of 0.82.

Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.02. Hercules Capital had a return on equity of 16.01% and a net margin of 67.68%.The business had revenue of $134.41 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $146.71 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.50 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Hercules Capital, Inc. will post 1.95 EPS for the current fiscal 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 issued 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 yield of 9.7%. Hercules Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 79.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on HTGC. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH decreased their price target 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 raised Hercules Capital from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Hercules Capital from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $15.50 to $18.50 in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $18.89.

Hercules Capital Company Profile

Hercules Capital, Inc is a specialty finance company and business development company that provides financing to venture capital- and private equity-backed companies. Founded in 2003, the company was formerly known as Hercules Technology Growth Capital and focuses on supporting businesses in technology, life sciences, and other innovation-oriented industries.

Hercules Capital offers secured and unsecured venture debt, growth capital, equipment financing, working capital facilities, acquisition financing, and recapitalization solutions.

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