Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,480,000 shares, an increase of 5.4% from the September 30th total of 6,150,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 950,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.8 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on HTGC shares. JMP Securities lifted their price target on shares of Hercules Capital from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Hercules Capital from $22.00 to $22.50 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Hercules Capital from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy 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 $19.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Scott Bluestein sold 100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.59, for a total transaction of $1,959,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,161,207 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $42,338,045.13. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Scott Bluestein sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.59, for a total value of $1,959,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,161,207 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $42,338,045.13. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Nikos Theodosopoulos acquired 1,608 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $18.03 per share, for a total transaction of $28,992.24. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 5,613 shares in the company, valued at $101,202.39. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HTGC. Accel Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Hercules Capital in the first quarter worth $268,000. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in Hercules Capital by 7.9% during the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 100,619 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,856,000 after acquiring an additional 7,355 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hercules Capital by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 301,373 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,560,000 after purchasing an additional 18,777 shares during the period. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Hercules Capital by 35.3% in the first quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC now owns 17,163 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $317,000 after purchasing an additional 4,482 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Graypoint LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hercules Capital by 2.6% during the first quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 133,374 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,461,000 after purchasing an additional 3,416 shares during the period. 19.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hercules Capital Price Performance

Shares of HTGC stock traded down $0.14 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $19.76. 1,025,952 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 911,568. Hercules Capital has a twelve month low of $15.14 and a twelve month high of $21.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 1.42. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $19.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $19.63. The firm has a market cap of $3.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.98 and a beta of 1.39.

Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.51. Hercules Capital had a net margin of 57.82% and a return on equity of 18.03%. The company had revenue of $125.25 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $125.80 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.52 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Hercules Capital will post 2.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Hercules Capital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be paid a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.72%. Hercules Capital's dividend payout ratio is currently 72.73%.

Hercules Capital Company Profile

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.