Wade Loo Buys 3,300 Shares of Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC) Stock

Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC) Director Wade Loo acquired 3,300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $14.98 per share, with a total value of $49,434.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 32,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $490,849.66. This trade represents a 11.20% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Hercules Capital Stock Performance

NYSE HTGC opened at $14.22 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $17.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. Hercules Capital, Inc. has a twelve month low of $14.10 and a twelve month high of $21.14. The company has a market capitalization of $2.61 billion, a PE ratio of 7.77 and a beta of 0.84.

Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48. The company had revenue of $133.25 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $141.57 million. Hercules Capital had a net margin of 63.80% and a return on equity of 15.97%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.49 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Hercules Capital, Inc. will post 1.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Hercules Capital Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.07 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 25th. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Hercules Capital’s payout ratio is currently 87.43%.

Key Stories Impacting Hercules Capital

Here are the key news stories impacting Hercules Capital this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple insiders (CEO Scott Bluestein, CFO Seth Meyer and several directors) bought stock this week — collectively over ~46,000 shares — signaling management confidence at current levels. See the CEO’s SEC filing for details. CEO SEC Filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts have modestly lowered fair-value estimates and price targets (examples: consolidated fair value trimmed from ~$21.22 to ~$20.31; several firms trimmed targets and ratings), a recalibration rather than a wholesale downgrade of the thesis. Analyst Note
• Negative Sentiment: Unusual bearish options flow — investors bought ~28,062 put contracts (a >1,200% jump vs typical daily put volume) — a strong short-term bearish signal that can amplify downward pressure.
• Negative Sentiment: Hercules cut its quarterly dividend to $0.07 (annualized $0.28), reducing income appeal for yield‑seeking investors and increasing concern about payout sustainability (payout ratio ~87%). See company data and dividend details. MarketBeat HTGC
• Negative Sentiment: Recent analyst downgrades and price‑target cuts (Wells Fargo, Keefe Bruyette & Woods, Piper Sandler and others) have pressured sentiment and likely contributed to selling. Analyst Coverage

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HTGC. CWM LLC boosted its position in shares of Hercules Capital by 79.6% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,381 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 612 shares during the period. Fox Run Management L.L.C. raised its holdings in shares of Hercules Capital by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 24,354 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $458,000 after buying an additional 657 shares during the period. Centaurus Financial Inc. lifted its position in Hercules Capital by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 37,819 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $715,000 after acquiring an additional 675 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in Hercules Capital by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 6,652 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $126,000 after acquiring an additional 680 shares during the period. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its position in Hercules Capital by 0.5% in the second quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 143,346 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,620,000 after acquiring an additional 697 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 19.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on HTGC shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Hercules Capital from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Hercules Capital from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Lucid Cap Mkts raised Hercules Capital to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Wall Street Zen cut Hercules Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, December 20th. Finally, Capital One Financial set a $19.75 target price on shares of Hercules Capital in a research report on Monday, December 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $19.29.

Hercules Capital Company 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.