London, July 3, 2026, 22:01 BST
- Hercules ended up 5.45% at 29p, trading 1.7 times its usual volume, but the stock is still down about 51% from the January peak.
- Brusk Korkmaz, CEO, showed 150,000 shares bought at 28.14p in the RNS table, but the main text in the same filing said he bought 140,000.
- Shares are at about 0.19x revenue for FY2025. H1 EBITDA dropped and Hercules increased debt capacity in June.
Hercules plc (LON:HERC) gained 5.45% on Friday after new director purchases, bringing focus back to its small free float following last week’s debt deal. Shares settled at 29p. Volume hit 391,542, above the 231,260 average. The stock is now up 38.1% from its June 24 low of 21p, but it’s still down 50.8% from the January 16 peak at 59p.
Hercules’s latest filing caused some confusion. In the narrative, the company said CEO Brusk Korkmaz bought 140,000 shares at a 28.14p average. But the included transaction table listed 150,000 shares—split as 40,000 at 28.8p, 20,000 at 27.425p, and 90,000 at 28.0p—all with the same weighted average price. Post-transaction, Korkmaz’s total was 18,070,846 shares, or 22.44% of Hercules.
Paula Wheatcroft, wife of CFO Paul Wheatcroft, picked up 37,000 shares at 27p each on July 1, lifting their combined stake to 80,200 shares or 0.10%. Based on the 150,000-share RNS table for Korkmaz, total disclosed purchases in July came to 187,000 shares between the two, valued at about £52,200 at those prices.
| Measure | Friday / filing data | Investor read |
|---|---|---|
| Closing price | 29p | Gained 5.45% Friday |
| Shares traded | 391,542 | Volume was 1.69x average |
| 52-week high | 59p | Still off 50.8% from January peak |
| 52-week low | 21p | Stock has rebounded 38.1% since June |
| July insider/PCA buys | 187,000 shares | Made up about 48% of Friday trading |
| Free float | 18.45 mln shares | July buying equals roughly 1.0% of float |
The key detail is in the last line. It’s a small cash spend, but the buy is large compared with the free float. Hercules lists 80.59 million shares, with 18.45 million free float, according to market data. In a stock this size, director trades can move the share debate, even on small amounts.
Hercules is still cheap on sales. AJ Bell valued the company at £23.37 million, putting it at about 0.19 times FY2025 revenue, which is £121.2 million. On underlying EBITDA of £6.4 million for the year, that’s 3.7 times. Statutory profit before tax from continuing operations came in at £0.9 million.
| Metric | Confirmed company data | Market question |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 revenue | 121.2 mln pounds, up 19% | Growth is not the issue |
| FY2025 underlying EBITDA | 6.4 mln pounds, up 34% | Margin was 5.3% |
| H1 2026 revenue | 59.2 mln pounds, up 8% | Run-rate stayed high |
| H1 2026 underlying EBITDA | 1.7 mln pounds, down from 2.6 mln | Margin slipped to 2.9% |
| Invoice discounting line | Limit rose to 20 mln pounds from 16 mln | Gave more working-capital headroom |
| Term loans | 5 mln pounds | Includes 4 mln pounds set for the Advantage NRG earn-out |
Hercules said June 26 it locked in more funding from IGF Business Credit, raising its invoice discounting limit to 20 million pounds from 16 million and adding 5 million pounds in term loans. Of that, 4 million pounds is earmarked for the last earn-out owed to Advantage NRG’s original owners.
Korkmaz said the financing brings Hercules “additional capacity” plus “financial flexibility and headroom”. IGF CEO Steven Chait said the lender was “thrilled to partner” with Hercules. Investegate
Insider buying comes as trading stays mixed. Hercules reported first-half revenue up 8% to a record 59.2 million pounds on June 5. Underlying EBITDA dropped to 1.7 million pounds from 2.6 million pounds. CEO Korkmaz said results usually lean to the second half and noted 14.0 million pounds in Civil Projects contracts since the start of FY2026.
Stockopedia analyst Roland Head kept a “RED” rating on June 26 after the funding update, saying he was “not convinced this is good news for shareholders.” Head warned of a “looming cash crunch,” pointing out Hercules was borrowing to cover deferred acquisition payouts and speed up cash from receivables. Stockopedia
Britain is dropping mandatory pre-application consultation for big infrastructure projects from July 24, the government said Thursday. Officials say the change could shorten approval times by as much as 12 months. Covered projects include wind, solar, reservoirs, and transport—Hercules’ main markets for labour and civil-project services.
The UK market closed higher Friday, with the FTSE 100 up 0.2% and the FTSE 250 gaining 0.5%. Hercules jumped 5.45%. The focus for Hercules is on whether it can convert higher first-half sales into cash and earnings in the second half, after it reported revenue up but EBITDA down in the opening half.
