Key Highlights

  • Total Investment income was $140.1 million, compared with $138.1 million in the third quarter of 2025.
  • Net investment income was $87.3 million, or $0.47 per share, against $88.6 million, or $0.49.
  • Net asset value per share was $12.26 at September 30, 2026, up from $12.13 at December 31, 2025.
  • The total investment portfolio reached $4,845.9 million at fair value, from $4,466.6 million.
  • The board declared a $0.40 distribution plus a $0.07 supplemental distribution on October 26, 2026.

Net investment income of $0.47 matches the distributions paid

Hercules Capital (NYSE:HTGC) is an internally managed specialty finance company that provides debt financing, mostly structured debt, to venture and institutional backed technology and life sciences companies. In its Quarterly Report for the period ended September 30, 2026, it reported total investment income of $140,115 thousand, up from $138,093 thousand a year earlier, a rise of about 1.5% on a calculated basis.

Total expenses rose to $52.8 million from $49.5 million, leaving net investment income at $87.3 million, or $0.47 per basic share, compared with $88.6 million, or $0.49. Distributions paid were $0.47 per share in both periods, so net investment income covered the payout on a per share basis.

Net income from operations eases as unrealized gains shrink

The net increase in net Assets from operations was $93.6 million, compared with $119.7 million a year earlier, or $0.50 per basic share versus $0.66. The main difference was net unrealized appreciation, which was $8.2 million against $33.0 million, while net realized losses were $1.9 million.

For the nine months, net investment income was $268.4 million versus $254.7 million, and the net increase in net assets from operations was $266.3 million versus $248.9 million.

Portfolio grows to $4.85 billion at a lower portfolio yield

Total investment portfolio Fair Value was $4,845.9 million, about 8.5% higher than $4,466.6 million at December 31, 2025 on a calculated basis, with debt at $4,646.0 million. Gross debt commitments originated by the company and its managed funds were $3,415.7 million over nine months versus $2,852.7 million,.

Total Yield for the quarter was 11.9%, compared with 13.0%, and the effective yield on debt investments was 12.3%, compared with 13.5%. Core yield, a non-GAAP measure that strips out one-time fee accelerations, was 11.9% versus 12.5%. Accelerated fee income was $4.4 million, against $10.2 million a year earlier.

Liquidity of $506.6 million and the September notes repayment

The company reported $506.6 million of available Liquidity at September 30, 2026, including $48.3 million of cash. Total debt was about $2.55 billion, and the regulatory asset coverage ratio was 203.2% excluding SBA debentures. On September 16, 2026, it fully repaid the $325.0 million of 2.625% notes that matured that day.

Funding included Equity issuance, with 2.3 million shares sold in the third quarter for net proceeds of $39.2 million, and 5.8 million shares for $91.2 million over nine months. Shares outstanding rose to 189.6 million from 182.7 million at the end of 2025, and net asset value per share rose about 1.1% on a calculated basis to $12.26 from $12.13.

Distribution declared and what to watch next

On October 26, 2026, the board declared a cash distribution of $0.40 per share payable on November 17, 2026 to holders of record on November 10, 2026. It also declared a $0.07 supplemental distribution on the same dates, part of a $0.28 supplemental program paid in four quarterly installments.

The company estimated undistributed taxable Earnings spillover of $0.88 per share. Points to watch include whether portfolio yields stabilize, how much future income comes from one-time fee accelerations and the pace of share issuance.