Riverbridge Partners LLC Buys 55,998 Shares of Hercules Capital, Inc. $HTGC

Riverbridge Partners LLC grew its stake in Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC) by 61.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 146,991 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 55,998 shares during the period. Riverbridge Partners LLC’s holdings in Hercules Capital were worth $2,471,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HTGC. Burk Holdings LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hercules Capital in the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Archer Investment Corp bought a new stake in Hercules Capital in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Fifth Third Bancorp bought a new stake in Hercules Capital in the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Hercules Capital during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Caitlin John LLC acquired a new stake in Hercules Capital during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 19.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on HTGC shares. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH lowered their price target on shares of Hercules Capital from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group raised shares of Hercules Capital from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $15.50 to $18.50 in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Hercules Capital from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hercules Capital has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $18.89.

Hercules Capital Stock Performance

HTGC stock opened at $16.09 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $16.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $16.10. Hercules Capital, Inc. has a 1-year low of $13.70 and a 1-year high of $19.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. The firm has a market cap of $3.05 billion, a PE ratio of 8.65 and a beta of 0.82.

Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47. Hercules Capital had a return on equity of 15.72% and a net margin of 62.84%. The company had revenue of $135.69 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $144.11 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.49 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Hercules Capital, Inc. will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Hercules Capital Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 10th will be issued a $0.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 10th. This is a decrease from Hercules Capital’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Hercules Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 86.02%.

Hercules Capital Profile

Hercules Capital, Inc. is a specialty finance company and business development company that provides financing to venture capital-backed businesses. Its lending focuses primarily on companies in the technology, life sciences and sustainable and renewable technology sectors. The company offers venture debt and growth capital through products such as senior secured loans, equipment financing and working capital facilities. Its financing is designed to support businesses at different stages, including product development, expansion and other growth initiatives.