SMH Capital Advisors Inc. Acquires Shares of 40,565 Hercules Capital, Inc. $HTGC

SMH Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC) in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 40,565 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $727,000. Hercules Capital comprises about 1.5% of SMH Capital Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 697 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Hercules Capital by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 25,902 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $490,000 after buying an additional 732 shares in the last quarter. Dakota Wealth Management boosted its position in Hercules Capital by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 38,720 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $732,000 after buying an additional 735 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Hercules Capital by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,176 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $400,000 after buying an additional 736 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. raised its position in shares of Hercules Capital by 173.4% during the second quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,386 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 879 shares during the last quarter. 19.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hercules Capital

In other news, CFO Seth H. Meyer acquired 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $14.33 per share, for a total transaction of $100,310.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 448,553 shares in the company, valued at $6,427,764.49. This trade represents a 1.59% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gayle A. Crowell bought 6,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $15.20 per share, with a total value of $100,320.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 87,458 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,329,361.60. This represents a 8.16% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have purchased 117,015 shares of company stock worth $1,749,620 over the last ninety days. 1.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hercules Capital Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of Hercules Capital stock opened at $14.87 on Monday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $17.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $18.01. The stock has a market cap of $2.73 billion, a PE ratio of 8.13 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. Hercules Capital, Inc. has a 12 month low of $13.77 and a 12 month high of $19.67.

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

Hercules Capital Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 25th were given a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 25th. Hercules Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 87.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HTGC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Hercules Capital from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen cut Hercules Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, December 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Hercules Capital from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Hercules Capital from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded shares of Hercules Capital from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $20.50 to $17.50 in a research note on Friday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $19.29.

Hercules Capital 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.