TCPC Stock: Dividend Cut to $0.17, NAV and the $523M Sale

The name, the ticker and what TCPC is

TCPC is the Nasdaq ticker of BlackRock TCP Capital Corp., a Delaware corporation that elected to be a business development company (BDC) and lends mostly to middle-market companies, with 91.5% of its $1.3 billion portfolio in senior secured debt and 89.8% in first-lien loans at June 30, 2026 across 134 portfolio companies. The 10-Q calls it “formerly known as TCP Capital Corp.” In March 2024 it absorbed BlackRock Capital Investment Corporation, which is why the filings carry a purchase-discount adjustment to income. It is externally managed by Tennenbaum Capital Partners, LLC, an indirect subsidiary of BlackRock, Inc. If you want the sponsor's unlisted fund, that is a different vehicle, covered on our BlackRock Private Credit Fund (BDEBT) page. For how BDCs work, see our explainer.

The dividend, quarter by quarter, against what the loans earned

A BDC pays out most of its taxable income, so the useful test is dividend against NII, the income after expenses and before gains and losses. TCPC also reports an adjusted NII that removes the amortization of the 2024 merger purchase discount ($0.01 a share in the June quarter).

Sources: the earnings releases (Exhibit 99.1 or 99.2 to the 8-Ks) for each quarter and the 10-K. Two readings. First, NII was above the dividend in every quarter of the table except the one with the $0.10 special, so the cut was not forced by a shortfall in the quarter; it followed a fall in NII. Second, NII per share dropped 45% from $0.40 to $0.22 in six quarters while the share count barely moved (83.9 million shares at June 30, 2026), so the fall is in income, not in dilution: total assets went from $1.9 billion to $1.5 billion, SOFR fell, and loans went on non-accrual.

The dividend history from the 10-K and 10-Q: in 2024 the board paid four regular $0.34 dividends plus a $0.10 special, $1.46 in all; in 2025 four regular $0.25 plus three $0.04 specials, $1.12; in 2026 it declared $0.17 on February 27, May 7 and August 6. The first half of 2026 paid $0.34 against $0.58 in the first half of 2025 (-41%, our arithmetic).

The price column shows why the yield looks high: the stock traded at 51% of NAV on June 30 ($3.36 against $6.58), against 77% at the end of 2025 ($5.47 against $7.07) and 94% at the end of 2024 ($8.71 against $9.23). The market is not pricing the reported NAV at par. A yield on a price is not a promise: the dividend is declared a quarter at a time.

NAV: where the $10.11 went

NAV per share was $10.11 at September 30, 2024, $9.23 at December 31, 2024, $8.71 through the middle of 2025, then $7.07, $6.72 and $6.58. The break is the fourth quarter of 2025. On January 23, 2026 the company published a preliminary estimate of $7.05 to $7.09, a fall of about 19%, and the final release said that six portfolio companies were about two-thirds (67%) of it and that about 91% of the reduction “was tied to investments that were underwritten in 2021 or earlier.” The January 8-K named them: Edmentum, Razor, SellerX, HomeRenew/Renovo, Hylan and InMobi.

In the first quarter of 2026 net portfolio markdowns were $35 million and NAV fell 4.9% to $6.72. In the June quarter NAV fell $0.14, to $6.58: NII of $0.22 less the $0.17 dividend added $0.05, and net realized and unrealized losses of $0.20 took away more. Realized losses included $10.0 million on the exit of AutoAlert. Over the half-year the 10-Q bridge is $7.07 at the start, NII $0.44, net losses $0.58, a $0.02 gain from buybacks, a $0.03 loss on debt extinguishment and $0.34 of dividends, ending at $6.58.

The August 4, 2026 sale: 48% of the debt portfolio, at 95 cents

On August 4 TCPC sold 95% of the equity of a vehicle (BlackRock DLF-C 2026, LLC) to funds managed by Pantheon, keeping 5%. The vehicle holds about $523 million of loans to 78 companies, approximately two-thirds of each position TCPC had in those companies, and the adviser manages it without compensation. The price was about 95% of the December 31, 2025 fair value, roughly $152 million. The 8-K says it expects to realize “a substantial premium relative to the value implied by the Company’s current share price”; the same release estimates the sale lowers NAV by about $57 million, $0.68 a share or about 10.4%. The board obtained a fairness opinion from Lincoln International.

Sources: the pro forma statements (Exhibit 99.1) and Item 2.01 of the August 6, 2026 8-K. The debt-to-net-assets line is our arithmetic on the balance-sheet figures; the company's own ratio is net of cash. The Domo paydown is about $69 million if Domo's announced asset sale to Progress Software closes; the 10-Q says that if it does not, the company would not expect that repayment in a comparable timeframe. From July 1 to August 5 the company also received $97.4 million of repayments, including $55.2 million from Motive and $39.6 million from Pico.

The financing was reshuffled before it. On May 27, 2026 TCPC closed a $535.8 million securitization (the BlackRock DLF 2026-C CLO), used it to repay $54 million of the merger-sub facility, $83 million of the SVCP facility and the TCPC Funding II loan facility, and on June 17 repaid $108.7 million of SBA debentures. On August 3 it terminated the ING-led Operating Facility. The $325 million of 2026 notes was repaid on February 9, 2026. What is left on the pro forma balance sheet is about $319 million of debt; the 10-Q's debt table shows the 2029 notes ($325 million par, 6.95%, due May 2029) as the main unsecured piece.

What the smaller portfolio might earn: a sketch, not a forecast

The sale moves the income base. Using only filed inputs, a static pro forma for one quarter:

The two yields are the 10-Q's total-portfolio effective yield (10.5%) and debt-portfolio yield (11.2%) at June 30, 2026. The sketch ignores the retained 5% stake in the vehicle, dividend income, how fast the $22.3 million of pro forma cash and repayments are redeployed, the Domo paydown, any further asset sales, and the 6.95% rate being applied to all remaining debt. It also assumes no incentive fee, which is consistent with the 10-Q: no incentive compensation has been accrued because cumulative total return is below the hurdle. It is arithmetic, not a forecast, and the point is the direction: the earnings base is smaller by roughly 40% while the dividend is a fixed $14.3 million a quarter. The release says the sale provides “greater strategic optionality”; the board has engaged KBW for a review that, per the 10-Q, could include reinvesting, buybacks, a combination, or an orderly realization of the portfolio.

What changed in the June 2026 quarter

• Income: investment income was $40.0 million against $51.5 million a year earlier; NII $18.1 million against $27.6 million (-34.3%, our arithmetic). Interest and debt costs were $15.0 million, 37.5% of investment income (our arithmetic).
• PIK: PIK interest was $6.6 million of $82.6 million of first-half investment income, 8.0% (our arithmetic).
• Management fee: the one-third waiver ended with 2025 ($7.3 million waived that year), so the fee was $4.2 million in the quarter. The base rate is 1.25% on assets up to 200% of NAV and 1.00% above.
• Non-accruals: 13 companies, 1.6% of fair value and 7.4% of cost, from 2.8% and 7.6% in March. The gap between the two means the loans are marked well below what was lent.
• Buybacks: 661,803 shares at an average $4.34 ($2.87 million) in the half; the $50 million program was re-approved on April 29, 2026 to run to April 30, 2027.
• Asset coverage: 160.3% against the 150% statutory minimum, before the sale.
• Industry mix: software 14.8%, diversified financial services 11.8%, internet software and services 11.5%, professional services 9.6%, health care technology 5.5%.
• Rates: 93.9% of debt investments are floating, 94.8% of those with floors. The 10-Q puts +100 basis points at +$6.4 million of annual NII ($0.08 a share) and -100 at -$6.3 million, on the June 30 balance sheet, before the sale.

Who is selling, who is buying, who runs it

The chief executive, chair and co-chief investment officer resigned on August 31, 2026; the president was appointed chief executive on September 2, and the chief operating officer resigned effective December 18, 2026; the new president, Dan Worrell, was named chief operating officer from that date. The 8-Ks say none of this was a disagreement with the company or BlackRock. A Schedule 13D filed October 14, 2026 shows Saba Capital Management holding 4,283,957 shares, 5.11%, bought at about $4.00 on average ($17.1 million, our arithmetic) between August 14 and October 13, 2026, and says it may talk to the board about “trading of the Common Shares at a discount to the Issuer's net asset value” and strategic plans. A 13D is a statement of intent to engage, not a proposal.

The 10-Q also discloses a securities class action filed February 3, 2026 in the Central District of California, covering purchasers between November 6, 2024 and January 23, 2026, several derivative suits and a wage claim linked to the Renovo bankruptcy. The company says the claims are without merit and intends to defend; it cannot estimate a loss.

The next report: November 5, 2026

The latest periodic filing is the Form 10-Q for June 30, 2026, filed August 6, 2026. On October 8 the company announced that it will report the quarter ended September 30, 2026 on Thursday, November 5, 2026, before the market opens, with a call at 12:00 p.m. Eastern. The company filed its Q3 10-Q on the same day as the earnings release in both 2024 and 2025 (November 6), so the 10-Q is likely to come the same day; the company has not said so. These are the lines that settle the open questions: NII per share against $0.17, the actual NAV after the sale (against $5.90 pro forma), whether the Domo repayment arrived, non-accruals, the dividend declared for the fourth quarter, and any outcome of the KBW review.

How TCPC compares with other BDCs

Among the listed BDCs we track in our listed BDC list, TCPC has the largest NAV fall (-24.5% in a year) among those with $500 million or more of net assets, and in our non-accrual census the highest share of the portfolio on non-accrual at cost (7.4%) among the 36 BDCs read. A comparable dividend reset that kept earnings roughly level is Golub Capital BDC, which cut from $0.39 to $0.33. The non-traded BDCs behave differently: they repurchase at NAV in tender offers instead of trading at a discount, as in our non-traded BDC list.

What a holder can do with this

This is a checklist built from the filings, not a recommendation.

• Separate the two questions. Is the $0.17 covered today (129% in the June quarter) and will it be covered on the smaller portfolio (sketch: 68% to 78%)? The November 5 release answers the second one.
• Use pro forma NAV, not $6.58. The reported NAV is before the sale; the company estimates $0.68 a share less, about $5.90.
• Read the price against both. At the October 13 price in the 13D ($3.97) the stock is 60% of the June NAV and 67% of pro forma NAV (our arithmetic). A discount can close by a rise in the price, a fall in NAV, a buyback, a merger or a liquidation; the strategic review lists all four.
• Check how much of your income this is. A dividend that fell 41% in a year, on a stock with a total market return of -32.4% in the first half of 2026, is a concentration question as much as a yield question.
• Tax. Distributions are reported on Form 1099-DIV with ordinary income and return of capital split; a loss sale may bring wash-sale rules. We do not give tax advice.

This is analysis of public documents, not investment, legal or tax advice. We do not give price targets or say whether to buy, sell or hold.

Frequently asked questions

Sources: BlackRock TCP Capital Corp. (CIK 1370755), read on SEC EDGAR on October 19, 2026: Form 10-K for 2025 (0001193125-26-079299); Forms 10-Q for March 31 and June 30, 2026 (0001193125-26-210632, 0001193125-26-336794); earnings-release exhibits to the 8-Ks of February 27, 2025 (0000950170-25-028392), May 8, 2025 (0000950170-25-066428), August 7, 2025 (0000950170-25-104595), November 6, 2025 (0001193125-25-268140), February 27, May 7 and August 6, 2026 (0001193125-26-079341, 0001193125-26-210643, 0001193125-26-336845), including the pro forma statements; 8-Ks of January 23 (0001140361-26-002240), June 1 (0001140361-26-023577), September 4 (0001140361-26-035674) and September 25, 2026 (0001140361-26-037711); Schedule 13D of October 14, 2026 (0001062993-26-005324); the company's October 8, 2026 announcement of the results date. Market prices are those printed in the 10-Qs and the 13D, not a live quote. All ratios marked our arithmetic use the displayed source inputs.