Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC) CEO Purchases $100,450.00 in Stock

27 Feb 2026, 23:44 by Danessa Lincoln · The Markets Daily

Hercules Capital, Inc. (NYSE:HTGC – Get Free Report) CEO Scott Bluestein acquired 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $14.35 per share, with a total value of $100,450.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 2,516,379 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,110,038.65. This represents a 0.28% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Scott Bluestein also recently made the following trade(s):

On Tuesday, February 24th, Scott Bluestein acquired 30,000 shares of Hercules Capital stock. The shares were bought at an average price of $15.08 per share, with a total value of $452,400.00.

Hercules Capital Price Performance

HTGC stock traded down $1.22 on Friday, reaching $14.22. The company had a trading volume of 10,141,365 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,633,990. The company’s fifty day moving average is $17.73 and its 200 day moving average is $18.21. The company has a market cap of $2.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.77 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 1.48. Hercules Capital, Inc. has a 1 year low of $14.10 and a 1 year high of $21.14.

Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48. The company had revenue of $133.25 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $141.57 million. Hercules Capital had a return on equity of 15.97% and a net margin of 63.80%.During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.49 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Hercules Capital, Inc. will post 1.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Hercules Capital Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be issued a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 25th. Hercules Capital’s dividend payout ratio is 87.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Lucid Cap Mkts raised shares of Hercules Capital to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Hercules Capital from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Piper Sandler lowered Hercules Capital from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $20.50 to $17.50 in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings cut Hercules Capital from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Hercules Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Hercules Capital has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $19.29.

Check Out Our Latest Analysis on Hercules Capital

Key Stories Impacting Hercules Capital

Here are the key news stories impacting Hercules Capital this week:

Positive Sentiment: Multiple insiders (CEO Scott Bluestein, CFO Seth Meyer and several directors) bought stock this week — collectively over ~46,000 shares — signaling management confidence at current levels. See the CEO’s SEC filing for details. CEO SEC Filing
Neutral Sentiment: Analysts have modestly lowered fair-value estimates and price targets (examples: consolidated fair value trimmed from ~$21.22 to ~$20.31; several firms trimmed targets and ratings), a recalibration rather than a wholesale downgrade of the thesis. Analyst Note
Negative Sentiment: Unusual bearish options flow — investors bought ~28,062 put contracts (a >1,200% jump vs typical daily put volume) — a strong short-term bearish signal that can amplify downward pressure.
Negative Sentiment: Hercules cut its quarterly dividend to $0.07 (annualized $0.28), reducing income appeal for yield‑seeking investors and increasing concern about payout sustainability (payout ratio ~87%). See company data and dividend details. MarketBeat HTGC
Negative Sentiment: Recent analyst downgrades and price‑target cuts (Wells Fargo, Keefe Bruyette & Woods, Piper Sandler and others) have pressured sentiment and likely contributed to selling. Analyst Coverage

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hercules Capital

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HTGC. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Hercules Capital during the 3rd quarter valued at $11,199,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its holdings in Hercules Capital by 425.6% in the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 580,414 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,610,000 after acquiring an additional 469,989 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG grew its position in Hercules Capital by 26.8% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,671,860 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,464,000 after acquiring an additional 353,092 shares during the period. Muzinich & Co. Inc. increased its stake in Hercules Capital by 34.5% during the fourth quarter. Muzinich & Co. Inc. now owns 1,335,787 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,140,000 after acquiring an additional 342,967 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HRT Financial LP increased its stake in Hercules Capital by 100.9% during the second quarter. HRT Financial LP now owns 558,010 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,200,000 after acquiring an additional 280,198 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 19.69% of the company’s stock.

Hercules Capital Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.