Hercules Capital (HTGC) Stock Price, News & Analysis

Company Overview

Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE: HTGC) is a specialty finance company and business development company that provides financing to innovative, growth-oriented companies. Its primary focus is venture lending for businesses in the technology, life sciences, and sustainable and renewable technology sectors, including companies supported by venture capital and private equity investors.

The company offers secured term loans, equipment financing, working capital and bridge loans, and other customized debt solutions. Hercules may also make equity-related investments, such as warrants, alongside its lending activities. Its financing is designed to support product development, acquisitions, expansion, and other corporate needs while helping companies extend their operating runway.

Founded in 2003, Hercules Capital serves primarily venture-backed companies in the United States and, selectively, in other markets. The company is headquartered in Palo Alto, California, and is led by Scott Bluestein, who serves as chief executive officer and chief investment officer.

Key Stats

• Today's Range: $17.26 to $17.80
• 50-Day Range: $15.68 to $17.74
• 52-Week Range: $13.70 to $19.55
• Volume: 2.09 million shs
• Average Volume: 1.41 million shs
• Market Capitalization: $3.24 billion
• P/E Ratio: 8.62
• Dividend Yield: 9.24%
• Price Target: $18.89
• Consensus Rating: Moderate Buy

Hercules Capital Stock Analysis - MarketRank™

Hercules Capital scored higher than 63% of companies evaluated by MarketBeat, and ranked 471st out of 835 stocks in the finance sector. Scores are calculated by averaging available category scores, with extra weight given to analysis and valuation.

Analyst's Opinion

• Score: 2.8 / 5
• Analyst Rating: Moderate Buy

Consensus Rating

Hercules Capital has received a consensus rating of Moderate Buy. The company's average rating score is 2.88, and is based on 1 strong buy rating, 5 buy ratings, 2 hold ratings, and no sell ratings.

Upside/Downside

The consensus price target for Hercules Capital is close to its current price, suggesting limited near-term upside or downside.

Amount of Analyst Coverage

Hercules Capital has only been the subject of 3 research reports in the past 90 days.

Earnings and Valuation

• Score: 1.9 / 5
• Proj. Earnings Growth: 2.05%

Earnings Growth

Earnings for Hercules Capital are expected to grow by 2.05% in the coming year, from $1.95 to $1.99 per share.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. the Market

The P/E ratio of Hercules Capital is 8.62, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the market average P/E ratio of about 44.67.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. Sector

The P/E ratio of Hercules Capital is 8.62, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the Finance sector average P/E ratio of about 25.31.

Price to Book Value per Share Ratio

Hercules Capital has a P/B Ratio of 1.42. P/B Ratios below 3 indicates that a company is reasonably valued with respect to its assets and liabilities.

Short Interest

• Score: 4.0 / 5
• Short Interest Level: Healthy

Percentage of Shares Shorted

4.73% of the float of Hercules Capital has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Hercules Capital has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 4.94.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Hercules Capital has recently decreased by 19.14%, indicating that investor sentiment is improving significantly.

Dividend

• Score: 1.7 / 5
• Dividend Strength: Weak

Dividend Leadership

Hercules Capital is a leading dividend payer. It pays a dividend yield of 9.23%, putting its dividend yield in the top 25% of dividend-paying stocks.

Dividend Growth

Hercules Capital has only been increasing its dividend for 1 years.

Dividend Coverage

The dividend payout ratio of Hercules Capital is 79.60%. Payout ratios above 75% are not desirable because they may not be sustainable.

Dividend Sustainability

Based on EPS estimates, Hercules Capital will have a dividend payout ratio of 80.40% in the coming year. This indicates that Hercules Capital may not be able to sustain their current dividend.

News and Social Media

• Score: 2.0 / 5
• News Sentiment: 0.16

News Sentiment

Hercules Capital has a news sentiment score of 0.16. This score is calculated as an average of sentiment of articles about the company over the last seven days and ranges from 2 (good news) to -2 (bad news). This is a lower news sentiment than the 0.72 average news sentiment score of Finance companies.

News Coverage This Week

MarketBeat has tracked 6 news articles for Hercules Capital this week, compared to 8 articles on an average week.

Search Interest

Only 23 people have searched for HTGC on MarketBeat in the last 30 days. This is a decrease of -26% compared to the previous 30 days.

MarketBeat Follows

19 people have added Hercules Capital to their MarketBeat watchlist in the last 30 days. This is an increase of 217% compared to the previous 30 days.

Company Ownership

• Score: 0.3 / 5
• Insider Trading: N/A

Insider Buying vs. Insider Selling

In the past three months, Hercules Capital insiders have not sold or bought any company stock.

Percentage Held by Insiders

2.00% of the stock of Hercules Capital is held by insiders.

Percentage Held by Institutions

19.69% of the stock of Hercules Capital is held by institutions.

Company Calendar

• Last Earnings: 7/30/2026
• Record date for 8/18 Dividend: 8/11/2026
• Ex-Dividend for 8/18 Dividend: 8/11/2026
• Dividend Payable: 8/18/2026
• Today: 9/20/2026
• Next Earnings (Estimated): 10/29/2026
• Fiscal Year End: 12/31/2026

Industry, Sector and Symbol

• Stock Exchange: NYSE
• Sector: Finance
• Industry: Capital Markets
• Sub-Industry: Asset Management & Custody Banks
• Current Symbol: NYSE:HTGC
• CIK: 1280784
• Web: www.htgc.com
• Phone: (650) 289-3060
• Fax: 650-473-9194
• Employees: 50
• Year Founded: 2003

Price Target and Rating

• Average Price Target for Hercules Capital: $18.89
• High Price Target: $22.00
• Low Price Target: $17.00
• Potential Upside/Downside: +9.0%
• Consensus Rating: Moderate Buy
• Rating Score (0-4): 2.88
• Research Coverage: 8 Analysts

Profitability

• EPS (Trailing Twelve Months): $2.01
• Trailing P/E Ratio: 8.62
• Forward P/E Ratio: 8.88
• P/E Growth: N/A
• Net Income: $339.74 million
• Net Margins: 67.68%
• Pretax Margin: 62.98%
• Return on Equity: 16.01%
• Return on Assets: 7.71%

Debt

• Debt-to-Equity Ratio: 1.03
• Current Ratio: 1.37
• Quick Ratio: 1.37

Sales & Book Value

• Annual Sales: $532.49 million
• Price / Sales: 6.09
• Cash Flow: $1.93 per share
• Price / Cash Flow: 8.98
• Book Value: $12.19 per share
• Price / Book: 1.42

Miscellaneous

• Outstanding Shares: 187,160,000
• Free Float: 183,421,000
• Market Cap: $3.24 billion
• Optionable: Optionable
• Beta: 0.81