In the latest close session, Hercules Capital (HTGC) was up +1.07% at $18.94. The stock's performance was ahead of the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.33%. At the same time, the Dow lost 0.63%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.22%.
Coming into today, shares of the specialty finance company had gained 3.48% in the past month. In that same time, the Finance sector gained 3.2%, while the S&P 500 gained 4.07%.
The investment community will be closely monitoring the performance of Hercules Capital in its forthcoming earnings report. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $0.47, reflecting a 7.84% decrease from the same quarter last year. Meanwhile, the latest consensus estimate predicts the revenue to be $126.18 million, indicating a 0.94% increase compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
For the annual period, the Zacks Consensus Estimates anticipate earnings of $1.91 per share and a revenue of $509.49 million, signifying shifts of -4.5% and +3.22%, respectively, from the last year.
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Hercules Capital. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. Hence, positive alterations in estimates signify analyst optimism regarding the business and profitability.
Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-term stock moves. To utilize this, we have created the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model that integrates these estimate changes and provides a functional rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, stretching from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has a noteworthy track record of outperforming, validated by third-party audits, with stocks rated #1 producing an average annual return of +25% since the year 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has shifted 0.08% upward. As of now, Hercules Capital holds a Zacks Rank of #4 (Sell).
With respect to valuation, Hercules Capital is currently being traded at a Forward P/E ratio of 9.82. This expresses a premium compared to the average Forward P/E of 9.02 of its industry.
The Financial – SBIC & Commercial Industry industry is part of the Finance sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 238, putting it in the bottom 4% of all 250+ industries.
The strength of our individual industry groups is measured by the Zacks Industry Rank, which is calculated based on the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within these groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
