Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Acquires Shares of 163,302 Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC)

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 163,302 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,281,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. owned about 0.10% of Hercules Capital at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Avior Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Hercules Capital by 177.2% during the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,802 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,152 shares in the last quarter. Archer Investment Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Hercules Capital by 345.4% in the 4th quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 2,325 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 1,803 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in shares of Hercules Capital by 199.6% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 4,042 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 2,693 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Hercules Capital by 45.6% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 4,086 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $80,000 after acquiring an additional 1,279 shares during the period. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc raised its position in Hercules Capital by 9.8% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 10,943 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $220,000 after acquiring an additional 974 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 19.69% of the company’s stock.

Hercules Capital Trading Up 1.8 %

NYSE:HTGC opened at $18.84 on Tuesday. Hercules Capital, Inc. has a 52-week low of $16.95 and a 52-week high of $22.04. The company has a quick ratio of 2.72, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $20.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $19.80. The company has a market capitalization of $3.26 billion, a PE ratio of 11.70 and a beta of 1.38.

Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The financial services provider reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49. Hercules Capital had a net margin of 53.28% and a return on equity of 17.19%. The company had revenue of $121.78 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $124.09 million. On average, equities research analysts expect that Hercules Capital, Inc. will post 1.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hercules Capital Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were given a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.98%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. Hercules Capital’s payout ratio is 99.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Hercules Capital from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $19.50 to $21.50 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Compass Point upped their target price on shares of Hercules Capital from $18.25 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $22.00 target price on shares of Hercules Capital in a report on Friday, February 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hercules Capital currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $21.40.

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.