Independent Financial Group LLC Acquires Shares of 83,400 Hercules Capital, Inc. $HTGC

Independent Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC) in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 83,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,232,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its position in Hercules Capital by 25.1% in the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 3,382,058 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,243,000 after purchasing an additional 678,783 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC grew its position in Hercules Capital by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 1,823,405 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,316,000 after purchasing an additional 29,292 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG grew its position in Hercules Capital by 26.8% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,671,860 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,464,000 after purchasing an additional 353,092 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in Hercules Capital by 17.9% in the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,382,084 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,004,000 after purchasing an additional 209,854 shares during the period. Finally, Muzinich & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Hercules Capital by 34.5% in the fourth quarter. Muzinich & Co. Inc. now owns 1,335,787 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,140,000 after buying an additional 342,967 shares during the last quarter. 19.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hercules Capital Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HTGC opened at $16.05 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $15.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $15.99. The stock has a market cap of $3.00 billion, a PE ratio of 9.07 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a current ratio of 1.89. Hercules Capital, Inc. has a one year low of $13.70 and a one year high of $19.67.

Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $134.94 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $141.39 million. Hercules Capital had a return on equity of 16.05% and a net margin of 59.85%.The business’s revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.45 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Hercules Capital, Inc. will post 1.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hercules Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were paid a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. Hercules Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 90.40%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on HTGC shares. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Hercules Capital from $16.50 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Citizens Jmp decreased their target price on Hercules Capital from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Hercules Capital from $19.00 to $18.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hercules Capital in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Hercules Capital from $15.00 to $15.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hercules Capital has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $18.21.

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.