Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC) Shares Gap Down - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Hercules Capital shares gapped down from $19.43 to $18.85 at market open, with recent trading around $19.16 and a volume of 219,303 shares.
• The company recently increased its quarterly dividend from $0.40 to $0.47, resulting in an annualized dividend of $1.88 and a yield of 9.8%.
• Analysts have mixed views on Hercules Capital, with an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a price target of $20.58, while some firms have lowered their price targets following recent trades.

Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $19.43, but opened at $18.85. Hercules Capital shares last traded at $19.16, with a volume of 219,303 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on HTGC. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Hercules Capital from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Hercules Capital from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. JMP Securities upped their price objective on Hercules Capital from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Citigroup restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Hercules Capital in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Hercules Capital from $18.50 to $19.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $20.58.

Hercules Capital Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.68. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $18.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $18.75. The company has a market capitalization of $3.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.63 and a beta of 0.94.

Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.03. Hercules Capital had a return on equity of 16.54% and a net margin of 51.46%. The company had revenue of $137.46 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $129.47 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.51 earnings per share. Hercules Capital's quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Hercules Capital, Inc. will post 1.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hercules Capital Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th will be issued a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 12th. This is an increase from Hercules Capital's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.9%. Hercules Capital's dividend payout ratio is 105.96%.

Institutional Trading of Hercules Capital

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hercules Capital in the second quarter worth approximately $522,447,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hercules Capital by 1.9% in the second quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 2,930,340 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $53,567,000 after acquiring an additional 55,885 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its stake in shares of Hercules Capital by 205.7% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 1,406,900 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,265,000 after acquiring an additional 946,700 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in shares of Hercules Capital by 6.6% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,253,204 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $22,909,000 after acquiring an additional 77,187 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hercules Capital by 14.5% in the first quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 1,130,362 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $21,714,000 after acquiring an additional 143,042 shares during the last quarter. 19.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Hercules Capital

Hercules Capital, Inc is a business development company. The firm specializing in providing venture debt, debt, senior secured loans, and growth capital to privately held venture capital-backed companies at all stages of development from startups to expansion stage including select publicly listed companies and select special opportunity lower middle market companies that require additional capital to fund acquisitions, recapitalizations and refinancing and established-stage companies.