10-K 1 f10k_equus212312025.htm FORM 10-K

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

(Mark One)

☒	ANNUAL REPORT UNDER SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the year ended December 31, 2025

☐	TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from _____to____

Commission File Number 814-00098

EQUUS TOTAL RETURN, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware		76-0345915
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)		(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

700 Louisiana St. 41st Floor, Houston, Texas		77002
(Address of principal executive offices)		(Zip Code)

____________________________________________

(former address, if changed since last report)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (713) 529-0900

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of Each Class

Trading Symbol

Name of Each Exchange

on Which Registered

Common Stock

EQS

New York Stock Exchange

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None.

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☐ No ☒

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐ No ☒

Table of Contents

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate website, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files). ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Large accelerated filer	☐	Accelerated filer	☐
Non-accelerated filer	☒	Smaller reporting company	☐
Emerging growth company	☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☒

If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive- based compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b) ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes ☐ No ☒

Approximate aggregate market value of common stock held by non-affiliates of the registrant: $8,642,891 computed on the basis of $1.36 per share, the closing price of the registrant’s common stock on the New York Stock Exchange on June 30, 2025. For purposes of calculating this amount only, all directors and executive officers of the registrant have been treated as affiliates. There were 13,966,696 shares of the registrant’s common stock, $.001 par value, outstanding as of April XX, 2026. The net asset value of a share of the Registrant as of December 31, 2025 was $1.19.

Portions of the Proxy Statement (to be filed) for the 2026 Annual Shareholder’s meeting are incorporated by reference in Parts II and III.

Table of Contents

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PART I		Page
Item 1	Business	4
Item 1A	Risk Factors	12
Item 1B	Unresolved Staff Comments	24
Item 1C	Cybersecurity	24
Item 2	Properties	25
Item 3	Legal Proceedings	25
Item 4	Mine Safety Disclosures	25

PART II
Item 5	Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities	25
Item 6	[Reserved]	27
Item 7	Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations	27
Item 7A	Quantitative and Qualitative Information About Market Risk	37
Item 8	Financial Statements and Supplementary Data	38
Item 9	Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure	74
Item 9A	Controls and Procedures	74
Item 9B	Other Information	76
Item 9C	Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections	76

PART III
Item 10	Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance	76
Item 11	Executive Compensation	77
Item 12	Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters	77
Item 13	Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence	77
Item 14	Principal Accountant Fees and Services	77

PART IV
Item 15	Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules	77
Item 16	Form 10-K Summary	77

Table of Contents

PART I

Item 1. Business

Equus Total Return, Inc. (“we,” “us,” “our,” “Equus” the “Company” or the “Fund”), a Delaware corporation, was formed by Equus Investments II, L.P. (the “Partnership”) on August 16, 1991. On July 1, 1992, the Partnership was reorganized and all of the assets and liabilities of the Partnership were transferred to the Fund in exchange for shares of common stock of the Fund. On August 11, 2006, our shareholders approved the change of the Fund’s investment strategy to a total return investment objective. This strategy seeks to provide the highest total return, consisting of capital appreciation and current income. In connection with this strategic investment change, the shareholders also approved the change of name from Equus II Incorporated to Equus Total Return, Inc.

We attempt to maximize the return to stockholders in the form of current investment income and long-term capital gains by investing in the debt and equity securities of companies with a total enterprise value between $5.0 million and $75.0 million, although we may engage in transactions with smaller or larger investee companies from time to time. We seek to invest primarily in companies pursuing growth either through acquisition or organically, leveraged buyouts, management buyouts and recapitalizations of existing businesses or special situations. Our income-producing investments consist principally of debt securities, including bonds, subordinated debt, debt convertible into common or preferred stock, or debt combined with warrants and common and preferred stock. Debt and preferred equity financing may also be used to create long-term capital appreciation through the exercise and sale of warrants received in connection with a financing. We seek to achieve capital appreciation by making investments in equity and equity-oriented securities issued by privately-owned companies or smaller public companies in transactions negotiated directly with such companies.

Equus is a closed-end management investment company that has elected to be treated as a business development company (“BDC”) under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (“1940 Act”). In order to remain a BDC, we must meet certain specified requirements under the 1940 Act, including investing at least 70% of our assets in eligible portfolio companies and limiting the amount of leverage we incur. Prior to the fourth quarter of 2024, Equus was also a regulated investment company (“RIC”) under Subchapter M of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986. A BDC that is also a RIC is not required to pay corporate-level income tax on its investment income. During the fourth quarter of 2024, we elected to not qualify as a RIC. Consequently, in the event that we incur operating income or net investment income, we will be taxed at regular corporate rates. Notwithstanding our present election, we may seek to requalify as a RIC in the future. For a discussion of requirements necessary to maintain our status as a BDC and as a RIC, please see “Business Development Company Requirements” and “Regulated Investment Company Tax Status,” respectively.

Our principal office is located at 700 Louisiana St., 41st Floor, Houston, Texas, 77002, and the telephone number is 1-800-856-0901. Our corporate website is located at www.equuscap.com. We make available free of charge on our website our annual report on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and all amendments to those reports as soon as reasonably practicable after such material is electronically filed or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). Our shares are traded on The New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) under the ticker symbol “EQS”.

Impact of Geopolitical Events on the Oil and Gas Sector. The substantial volatility in world markets has been prominent in the oil and gas sector in the past several years, with geopolitical conflicts being a significant contributor to short-term price changes. In the aftermath of the commencement of hostilities in Ukraine in 2022, oil prices began a rise and fall in successive quarters between the third quarter of 2023 and the fourth quarter of 2024 before experiencing a slow and steady decline from the end of 2024 and throughout 2025, and stood at $57.26 as of December 31, 2025. The recent conflict with Iran, while not greatly affecting long-term prices, has had a dramatic effect on spot prices in the first quarter of 2026. Since the beginning of 2024, natural gas prices steadily increased before declining in the first three quarters of 2025 and recovering at the end of the year, finishing the year ended December 31, 2025 at $4.00 per MMBTU. Recent long-term oil price stability has been a significant factor in increased consolidation activity in the Williston Basin region in North Dakota where Morgan E&P, Inc. holds its development rights.

Table of Contents

Authorization to Withdraw BDC Election. Holders of a majority of our outstanding common stock have previously approved our cessation as a BDC under the 1940 Act and have authorized our Board to cause the Fund’s withdrawal of its election to be classified as a BDC, effective as of a date designated by the Board and our Chief Executive Officer. Although this authorization has since expired, we expect to receive an additional authorization from our stockholders in the future. This authorization is a consequence of our expressed intent to transform Equus into an operating company or a permanent capital vehicle. Notwithstanding any such authorization to withdraw our BDC election, we will not submit any such withdrawal unless and until Equus has entered into a definitive agreement to effect a transformative transaction. Further, even if we are again authorized to withdraw our election as a BDC, we will require a subsequent affirmative vote from holders of a majority of our outstanding voting shares to enter into any such definitive agreement or change the nature of our business. While we are presently evaluating various opportunities that could enable us to accomplish this transformation, we cannot assure you that we will be able to do so within any particular time period or at all. Moreover, we cannot assure you that the terms of any such transformative transaction would be acceptable to us.

Outlook. Our Board and management of the Fund (“Management”) continue to believe that current market conditions and recent portfolio performance dictate the need to pursue a more active role in the management of our remaining investments and to seek liquidity events at the appropriate time to protect and enhance shareholder value. These activities include continuous monitoring and intensive reviews of portfolio company performance and expectations, providing follow-on capital when necessary, and the exploration of liquidity events for certain portfolio companies to position the Fund to maximize investment returns and, to the extent we intend to remain a BDC, actively pursuing suitable new investments for the Fund.

Investment Objective

To the extent we remain a BDC and do not complete the transformation of Equus into an operating company as described above, our investment objective is to maximize the total return to our stockholders in the form of current investment income and long-term capital gains by investing in the debt and equity securities of small and middle market capitalization companies that are generally not publicly traded at the time of our investment. As a result of our endeavors in the energy sector, we may also seek to purchase or develop working interests, mineral interests, and revenue leasehold interests in oil and gas properties, although we remain open to exploring investment opportunities in a variety of other sectors. Should we continue to grow and develop Equus as a closed-end fund or permanent capital vehicle instead of an operating company, we intend to include investments in progressively larger enterprises.

Investment Strategy

Our investment strategy attempts to strike a balance between the potential for gain and the risk of loss. With respect to capital appreciation, Equus is a “growth- at-reasonable-price” investor that seeks to identify and acquire securities that meet our criteria for selling at reasonable prices. We give priority to cash producing investments wherein we invest principally in debt or preferred equity financing with the objective of generating regular interest and dividend income back to the Fund. Debt and preferred equity financing may also be used to create long-term capital appreciation through the exercise and sale of warrants received in connection with a financing. Given market conditions over the past several years and the performance of our portfolio, our Management and Board believe it prudent to continue to review alternatives to refine and further clarify the current strategies.

Investment Criteria

Consistent with our investment objective and strategy, our Management evaluates prospective investments based upon the criteria set forth below. We may modify some or all of these criteria from time to time.

Management Competency and Ownership. We seek to invest in companies with experienced management teams who have demonstrated a track record of successful performance. Further, we desire to invest in companies with significant management ownership. We believe that significant management ownership in small capitalization and middle market companies provides appropriate incentives and an alignment of interests for management to maximize shareholder value. In addition, we will seek to design compensation and incentive arrangements that align the interests of the portfolio company’s management with those of the Fund to enhance potential returns.

Substantial Target Market. We desire to focus on companies whose products or services have favorable growth potential and strong competitive positions in their respective markets. These positions may be as leadership positions within a given industry or market niche positions in which the product or service has a demonstrated competitive advantage. The market in which a potential portfolio company operates should either be sizeable or have significant growth potential.

Table of Contents

History of Profitability and Favorable Growth Potential. We target companies that have demonstrated a history of profitability or a reasonable expectation of a return to profitability in the near future.

Ability to Provide Regular Cash Interest and Distributions. We look for companies with strong cash flow models sufficient to provide regular and consistent interest and/or preferred dividend payments.

Management Assistance and Substantial Equity. Given the requirements of a BDC under the 1940 Act, we seek to invest in companies that will permit substantial managerial assistance, including representation on the board of directors of the company or its equivalent. With regard to equity investments, we desire to obtain a substantial investment position in portfolio companies. This position may be as a minority shareholder with certain contractual rights and powers, or as a majority shareholder, and should otherwise allow us to have substantive input on the direction and strategies of the portfolio company.

Plausible Exit and Potential for Appreciation. Prior to investing in a portfolio company, we will seek to analyze potential exit strategies and pursue those investments with such strategies as may be achievable.

Investment Operations

Our investment operations consist principally of the following basic activities:

Investment Selection. Historically, many of our investment opportunities have come from Management, members of our Board, other private equity investors, direct approaches from prospective portfolio companies and referrals from investment banks, business brokers, commercial, regional and local banks, attorneys, accountants and other members of the financial community. Subject to the approval of our Board, we may compensate certain referrals with finder’s fees to the extent permissible under applicable law and consistent with industry practice.

Due Diligence. Once a potential investment is identified, we undertake a due diligence review using information provided by the prospective portfolio company and publicly available information. Management may also seek input from consultants, investment bankers and other knowledgeable sources. The due diligence review will typically include, but is not limited to:

	·	Review of historical and prospective financial information, including audits and budgets;

	·	On-site visits;

	·	Interviews with management, employees, customers and vendors;

	·	Review of existing loan documents and credit arrangements, if any;

	·	Background checks on members of management; and

	·	Research relating to the company, its management, industry, markets, products and services and competitors.

Structuring Investments. We typically negotiate investments in private transactions directly with the owner or issuer of the securities acquired. Management structures the terms of a proposed investment, including the purchase price, the type of security to be purchased and our future involvement in the portfolio company’s business. We seek to structure the terms of the investment to provide for the capital needs of the portfolio company while maximizing our opportunities for current income and capital appreciation. In addition, we may invest with other co-investors including private equity firms, business development companies, small business investment companies, venture capital groups, institutional investors and individual investors.

Table of Contents

Providing Management Assistance and Monitoring of Investments. Successful private equity investments typically require active monitoring of, and significant participation in, major business decisions of portfolio companies. In several cases, officers and directors of the Fund serve as members of the governing boards of portfolio companies. Such management assistance is required of a BDC under the 1940 Act. We seek to provide guidance and management assistance with respect to such matters as capital structure, acquisitions, budgets, profit goals, corporate strategy, portfolio management and potential sale of the company or other exit strategies. In connection with their service as directors of portfolio companies, officers and directors of the Fund may receive and retain directors’ fees or reimbursement for expenses incurred, and may participate in incentive stock option plans for non-employee directors, if any. When necessary and as requested by any portfolio company, Management, on behalf of the Fund, may also assign staff professionals with financial or management expertise to assist portfolio company management.

Follow-On Investments

Following our initial investment, a portfolio company may request that we make follow-on investments by providing additional equity or loans needed to fully implement its business plans to develop a new line of business or to recover from unexpected business problems or other purposes. In addition, follow-on investments may be made to exercise warrants or other preferential rights granted to the Fund or otherwise to increase our position in a portfolio company. We may make follow-on investments in portfolio companies from cash on hand or borrow all or a portion of the funds required. If we are unable to make follow-on investments due to lack of available capital, the portfolio company in need of the investment may be negatively impacted, we may be required to subordinate our debt interest in the portfolio company to a new lender, and/or our equity interest in the portfolio company may be diluted if outside equity capital is required.

Disposition of Investments

The method and timing of the disposition of our investments in portfolio companies are critical to our ability to realize capital gains and minimize capital losses. We may dispose of our portfolio securities through a variety of transactions, including recapitalizations, refinancings, management buyouts, repayments from cash flow, acquisitions of portfolio companies by a third party and outright sales of the Fund’s securities in a portfolio company. In addition, under certain circumstances we may distribute our portfolio securities in-kind to our stockholders. In structuring our investments, we endeavor to reach an understanding with the management of the prospective portfolio company as to the appropriate method and timing of the disposition of the investment. In some cases, we seek registration rights for our portfolio securities at the time of investment which typically provide that the portfolio company will bear the cost of registration. To the extent not paid by the portfolio company, the Fund typically bears the costs of disposing of our portfolio investments.

Current Portfolio Companies

For a description of our portfolio company investments as of December 31, 2025, see “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations–Portfolio Securities.”

Valuation

On a quarterly basis, Management values our portfolio investments. These valuations are subject to the approval and adoption of the Board. Valuations of our portfolio securities at “fair value” are performed in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”).

The fair value of investments for which no market exists (which includes most of our investments) is determined through procedures established in good faith by the Board. As a general principle, the current “fair value” of an investment is the amount the Fund might reasonably expect to receive upon its sale in an orderly manner. There are a range of values that are reasonable for such investments at any particular time.

Table of Contents

We base our adjustments to fair value upon such factors as the portfolio company’s earnings, cash flow and net worth, the market prices for similar securities of comparable companies, an assessment of the company’s current and future financial prospects and various other factors and assumptions. In the case of unsuccessful or substantially declining operations, we may base a portfolio company’s fair value upon the company’s estimated liquidation value. Fair valuations are inherently subjective, and our estimate of fair value may differ materially from amounts actually received upon the disposition of our portfolio securities. Also, any failure by a portfolio company to achieve its business plan or obtain and maintain its financing arrangements could result in increased volatility and result in a significant and rapid change in its value.

Our general intent is to hold our loans to maturity when appraising our privately held debt investments. As such, we believe the fair value will not exceed the cost of the investment; however, we perform a yield analysis to determine if a debt security has been impaired.

Our Management may engage independent, third-party valuation firms to conduct independent appraisals and review Management’s preliminary valuations of each privately-held investment in order to make their own independent assessment. Any third- party valuation data would be considered as one of many factors in a fair value determination. Management would then present its fair value recommendations to the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors for review. Following review and any adjustments required thereby, the Audit Committee would, in turn, recommend the fair values for all of the Fund’s portfolio investments to the Board of Directors for final approval.

To the extent that market quotations are readily available for our investments and such investments are freely transferable, we value them at the closing market price on the date of valuation. For securities which are of the same class as a class of public securities but are restricted from free trading (such as Rule 144 stock), we establish our valuation by discounting the closing market price to reflect the estimated impact of illiquidity caused by such restrictions. We generally hold investments in debt securities to maturity. Accordingly, we determine the fair value of debt securities on the basis of the terms of the debt securities and the financial condition of the issuer. We value certificates of deposit at their face value, plus interest accrued to the date of valuation.

Our Board reviews the valuation policies on a quarterly basis to determine their appropriateness and reserves the right to hire and, from time to time, utilizes independent valuation firms to review Management’s valuation methodology or to conduct an independent valuation.

Competition

We compete with a large number of public and private equity and mezzanine funds and other financing sources, including traditional financial services companies such as finance companies and commercial banks. Many of our competitors are substantially larger and have considerably greater financial, technical and marketing resources. Our competitors may have a lower cost of funds and many have access to funding sources not available to us. In addition, certain of our competitors may have higher risk tolerances or different risk assessments, which could allow them to consider a wider variety of investments and establish more relationships and build their respective market shares. In addition, many of our competitors are not subject to the regulatory restrictions imposed by the 1940 Act imposes on BDCs.

We cannot assure you that the competitive pressures we face will not have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, because of this competition, we may not be able to take advantage of attractive investment opportunities and may not be able to identify and make investments that satisfy our investment objectives or meet our investment goals.

Properties

Our principal executive offices are located at 700 Louisiana St., 41^st Floor, Houston, Texas 77002. Should we remain a BDC and not transform into an operating company or a permanent capital vehicle, we believe our office facilities are suitable and adequate for our operations as currently conducted and contemplated.

Table of Contents

Business Development Company Requirements

Qualifying Assets. As a BDC, we may not acquire any asset other than qualifying assets, as defined by the 1940 Act, unless, at the time the acquisition is made, the value of our qualifying assets represents at least 70% of the value of our total assets. The principal categories of qualifying assets relevant to our business are the following:

	·	Securities purchased in transactions not involving any public offering from an issuer that is an eligible portfolio company. An eligible portfolio company is any issuer that (a) is organized and has its principal place of business in the United States, (b) is not an investment company other than a small business investment company wholly-owned by the BDC, and (c) either (i) (A) does not have any class of securities with respect to which a broker or dealer may extend margin credit, (B) is controlled by the BDC either singly or as part of a group and an affiliated person of the BDC is a member of the issuer’s board of directors, or (C) has total assets of not more than $4 million and capital and surplus of at least $2 million, or (ii) does not have any class of securities listed on a national securities exchange, unless the total market capitalization of such issuer does not exceed $250 million. Qualifying assets may also include follow-on investments in a company that was a particular type of eligible portfolio company at the time of the BDC’s initial investment, but subsequently did not meet the definition;

	·	Securities received in exchange for or distributed with respect to securities described above, or pursuant to the exercise of options, warrants or rights relating to such securities; and

	·	Cash, cash items, government securities, or high quality debt securities maturing in one year or less from the time of investment.

To include certain securities above as qualifying assets for the purpose of the 70% test, a BDC must make available to the issuer of those securities significant managerial assistance, such as providing significant guidance and counsel concerning the management, operations, or business objectives and policies of a portfolio company. We offer to provide significant managerial assistance to each of our portfolio companies.

We may not change the nature of our business so as to cease to be, or withdraw our election as, a BDC unless authorized by vote of the holders of the majority of our outstanding voting securities, as defined in the 1940 Act. As noted above, we have previously received this authorization from our shareholders to withdraw our BDC election and, although this authorization has expired, we expect to receive an additional authorization by our stockholders in the future. This authorization was a consequence of our plan to effect a transformation of Equus by: (i) acquiring or merging with an operating company based in the energy, natural resources, technology, or financial services sectors, and (ii) terminating the Fund’s election to be classified as a BDC under the 1940 Act. Notwithstanding any future authorization to withdraw our BDC election, we will also require a separate affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of our outstanding voting securities to consummate a transformation of Equus and change the nature of our business (see “Significant Developments−Authorization to Withdraw BDC Election” above).

Temporary Investments. Pending investment in portfolio companies, we invest our available funds in interest- bearing bank accounts, money market mutual funds, U.S. Treasury securities and/or certificates of deposit with maturities of less than one year (collectively, “Temporary Investments”). Temporary Investments may also include commercial paper (rated or unrated) and other short-term securities. Temporary Investments constituting cash, cash items, securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury or U.S. Government agencies and high quality debt securities (commercial paper rated in the two highest rating categories by Moody’s Investor Services, Inc. or Standard & Poor’s Corporation, or if not rated, issued by a company having an outstanding debt issue so rated, with maturities of less than one year at the time of investment) will qualify for determining whether we have 70% of our total assets invested in qualifying assets or in qualified Temporary Investments for purposes of the BDC provisions of the 1940 Act.

Leverage. We are permitted by the 1940 Act, under specified conditions, to issue multiple classes of senior debt and a single class of preferred stock senior to the common stock if our asset coverage, as defined in the 1940 Act, is at least 150% after the issuance of the debt or the senior stockholders’ interests. In addition, provisions must be made to prohibit any distribution to common stockholders or the repurchase of any shares unless the asset coverage ratio is at least 150% at the time of the distribution or repurchase.

Table of Contents

Fund Share Sales Below Net Asset Value. To the extent we remain a BDC, we generally may sell our common stock at a price that is below the prevailing net asset value per share only upon the approval of the policy by stockholders holding a majority of our issued shares, including a majority of shares held by nonaffiliated stockholders. We may, in accordance with certain conditions established by the SEC, sell shares below net asset value in connection with the distribution of rights to all of our stockholders. We may also issue shares at less than net asset value in payment of dividends to existing stockholders.

No Redemption Rights. Since we are a closed-end BDC, our stockholders have no right to present their shares to the Fund for redemption. Recognizing the possibility that our shares might trade at a discount, our Board has determined that it would be in the best interest of our stockholders for the Fund to be authorized to attempt to reduce or eliminate a market value discount from net asset value. Accordingly, from time to time we may, but are not required to, repurchase our shares (including by means of tender offers) to attempt to reduce or eliminate any discount or to increase the net asset value of our shares.

Affiliated Transactions. Many of the transactions involving the Fund and its affiliates (as well as affiliates of such affiliates) require the prior approval of a majority of the independent directors and a majority of the independent directors having no financial interest in the transactions. However, certain transactions involving closely affiliated persons of the Fund require the prior approval of the SEC.

Regulated Investment Company Tax Status

As a BDC, we have historically operated to qualify as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code"), although RIC qualification is not a prerequisite to qualifying as a BDC. During the fourth quarter of 2024, we elected to not qualify as a RIC, although we may seek to requalify at a later date. Because we do not presently qualify as a RIC, in the event that we generate operating income or net investment income, we will be subject to regular corporate rates of taxation.

If we requalify as a RIC and annually distribute to our stockholders in a timely manner at least 90% of our investment company taxable income, we will not be subject to federal income tax on the portion of our taxable income and capital gains we distribute to our stockholders. Taxable income generally differs from net income as defined by accounting principles generally accepted in the United States due to temporary and permanent timing differences in the recognition of income and expenses, returns of capital and net unrealized appreciation or depreciation.

While we are not required to qualify as a RIC to maintain our BDC status, we must continue to qualify as an investment company to obtain RIC status under the Code, among other requirements. To obtain (or maintain, as the case may be) RIC status, we must (i) continue to qualify as an investment company; (ii) distribute to our stockholders in a timely manner at least 90% of our investment company taxable income, as defined by the Code; (iii) derive in each taxable year at least 90% of our gross investment company income from dividends, interest, payments with respect to securities loans, gains from the sale of stock or other securities or other income derived with respect to our business of investing in such stock or securities as defined by the Code; and (iv) meet investment diversification requirements. The diversification requirements generally require us, at the end of each quarter of the taxable year, to have (a) at least 50% of the value of our assets consist of cash, cash items, government securities, securities of other RICs and other securities if such other securities of any one issuer do not represent more than 5% of our assets and 10% of the outstanding voting securities of the issuer and (b) no more than 25% of the value of our assets invested in the securities of one issuer (other than U.S. government securities and securities of other RICs), or of two or more issuers that are controlled by us and are engaged in the same or similar or related trades or businesses.

In addition, should we choose not to distribute at least 98.2% of our net income consisting of capital gains for each one-year period ending on October 31, we will be subject to a 4.0% nondeductible Federal exercise tax.

If we fail to satisfy the 90% distribution requirement or otherwise fail to requalify as a RIC in any taxable year, we will be subject to tax in such year on all of our taxable income, regardless of whether we make any distribution to our stockholders. In addition, in that case, all of our distributions to our stockholders will be characterized as ordinary income (to the extent of our current and accumulated earnings and profits). We have distributed and currently intend to distribute sufficient dividends to eliminate our investment company taxable income; however, none have been necessary in recent years.

Table of Contents

Custodian

We act as the custodian of our securities to the extent permitted under the 1940 Act and are subject to the restrictions imposed on self- custodians by the 1940 Act and the rules and regulations thereunder. We have also entered into an agreement with Amegy Bank with respect to the safekeeping of our securities. The principal business office of Amegy Bank is 1717 West Loop South, Houston, Texas 77027.

Transfer and Disbursing Agent

We employ Equiniti Group as our transfer agent to record transfers of our shares, maintain proxy records and to process distributions. The principal business office of our transfer agent is 6201 15th Avenue, 2nd Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11219.

Certifications

In July 2025, pursuant to Section 303A.12(a) of the NYSE Listed Company Manual, we submitted to the NYSE an unqualified certification of our Chief Executive Officer. In addition, certifications by our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer have been filed as exhibits to this annual report on Form 10- K as required by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

Forward-Looking Statements

All statements contained herein that are not historical facts including, but not limited to, statements regarding anticipated activity are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the federal securities laws, involve a number of risks and uncertainties, and are based on the beliefs and assumptions of Management, based on information currently available to Management. Actual results may differ materially. In some cases, readers can identify forward- looking statements by words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expect,” “objective,” “plan,” “intend,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “Management believes,” “estimate,” “predict,” “project,” “potential,” “forecast,” “continue,” “strategy,” or “position” or the negative of such terms or other variations of them or by comparable terminology. In particular, statements, express or implied, concerning future actions, conditions, or events, future operating results, or the ability to generate sales, income, or cash flow are forward-looking statements.

Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially are the following: (i) changes in the economic conditions in which we operate, including changes related to the evolving impact of the coronavirus, which might negatively impacting our financial resources; (ii) the substantially greater resources of certain of our competitors than the Fund, potentially reducing the number of suitable investment opportunities offered or reducing the yield necessary to consummate the investment; (iii) the uncertainty regarding the value of our privately held securities that require a good faith estimate of fair value for which a change in estimate could affect the Fund’s net asset value; (iv) the illiquidity of our investments in securities of privately held companies which could affect our ability to realize a gain; (v) the default of one or more of our portfolio companies on their loans or the failure of such companies to provide any returns on our investments which could affect the Fund’s operating results; (vi) our dependence on external financing to grow our business; (vii) our ability to retain key management personnel; (viii) an economic downturn or recession that could impair our portfolio companies and therefore harm our operating results; (iv) our borrowing arrangements, which could impose certain restrictions; (x) changes in interest rates that may affect our cost of capital and net operating income; (xi) our inability to incur additional indebtedness unless the Fund maintains an asset coverage of at least 150%, which may affect returns to our stockholders; (xii) the possible failure of the Fund to continue to qualify for our pass-through treatment as a RIC which could have an effect on stockholder returns; (xiii) the volatility of the price of our common stock; (xiv) general business and economic conditions and other risk factors described in its reports filed from time to time with the SEC; and (xv) risks related to our plan to transform Equus into an operating company or a permanent capital vehicle. We caution readers not to place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements, which statements are made pursuant to the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and, as such, speak only as of the date made.

Table of Contents

Item 1A. Risk Factors

An investment in our securities involves certain risks relating to our structure and investment objectives. The risks and uncertainties described below are not the only ones facing Equus. You should carefully consider these risks, together with all of the other information included in our annual report on Form 10-K, including our financial statements and the related notes thereto.

Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us, or not presently deemed material by us, may also impair our operations and performance.

If any of the following risks actually occur, our business, financial condition or results of operations could be materially adversely affected. If that happens, the trading price of our common stock could decline and you may lose all or part of your investment.

Risks Related to Our Investments

Investments in small capitalization companies present certain risks that may not exist to the same degree as investments in larger, more established companies and will cause such investments to be volatile and speculative.

We have invested and may continue to invest, in private, small and/or new companies that may be in their early stages of development. Investments in these types of companies involve a number of significant risks, including the following:

	·	They typically have shorter operating histories, narrower product lines and smaller market shares than public companies, which tend to render them more vulnerable to competitors’ actions and market conditions as well as general economic downturns;

	·	They may have no earnings or experienced losses or may have limited financial resources and may be unable to meet their obligations under their securities, which may be accompanied by a deterioration in the value of their equity securities or any collateral or guarantees provided with respect to their debt;

	·	They are more likely to depend on the management talents and efforts of a small group of persons and, as a result, the death, disability, resignation or termination of one or more of those persons could have a material adverse effect on their business and prospects and, in turn, on our investment;

	·	They may have difficulty accessing the capital markets to meet future capital needs;

	·	They generally have less predictable operating results, may from time to time be parties to litigation, may be engaged in rapidly changing businesses with products subject to a substantial risk of obsolescence and may require substantial additional capital to support their operations, finance expansion or maintain their competitive position; and

	·	Generally little public information exists regarding these companies, and investors in these companies generally must rely on the ability of the equity sponsor to obtain adequate information for the purposes of evaluating potential returns and making a fully informed investment decision.

Table of Contents

There is uncertainty regarding the value of our privately held securities.

Our net asset value is based on the value we assign to our portfolio investments. For investments that are not listed on a securities exchange or quotation medium, we determine the value of our investments in securities for which market quotations are not available as of the end of each calendar quarter, unless there is a significant event requiring a change in valuation in the interim. Because of the inherent uncertainty of the valuation of portfolio securities that do not have readily ascertainable market values, our fair value determination may differ materially from the value that would have been used had a ready market existed for the securities. We determine the fair value of investments for which no market quotations are available based upon a methodology that we believe reaches a reasonable estimation of fair value. However, we do not necessarily apply multiple valuation metrics in reaching this determination and, in some cases, we do not obtain any third-party valuations before reaching this determination. Our determinations of the fair value of our investments have a material impact on our net earnings through the recording of unrealized appreciation or depreciation of investments as well as our assessment of interest income recognition. Our net asset value could be affected materially if our determinations of the fair value of our investments differ significantly from values based on a ready market for these securities.

We depend upon Management for our future investment success.

We depend upon the diligence and skill of our Management to select, structure, close and monitor our investments. Management is responsible for identifying, structuring, evaluating, monitoring, and disposing of our investments, and the services they collectively provide significantly impact our results of operations. Our future success will depend to a significant extent on the continued service and coordination of Management. Our success will depend on our ability to retain our existing Management and to recruit additional other highly qualified individuals. If we are unable to integrate new investment and management personnel, we may be unable to achieve our desired investment results.

Management may not be able to implement our investment objective successfully.

Our Board is taking a more opportunistic approach to our portfolio investment strategy, shifting our investment emphasis to sectors such as energy. In order to implement our investment strategy, Management must analyze, conduct due diligence, invest in, monitor and sell investment interests in industries in which many of them have not previously been involved. Also, we expect that our investment strategy will continue to require Management to investigate and monitor investments that are much more broadly dispersed geographically. In addition, Management is required to provide valuations for investments in a broader range of securities, including debt securities, which may require expertise beyond that previously required. We cannot assure investors that the overall risk of their investment in the Fund will be reduced as a result of our investment strategy. If we cannot achieve our investment objective successfully, the value of your investment in our common stock could decline substantially.

We may not realize gains from our equity investments.

We frequently invest in the equity securities of our portfolio companies. Also, when we make a loan, we sometimes receive warrants to acquire stock issued by the borrower. Ultimately, our goal is to sell these equity interests and realize gains. These equity interests may not appreciate and, in fact, may depreciate in value. For our present portfolio and other investments we may make in the future, the market value of our equity investments may fall below our estimate of the fair value of such investments before we sell them. Given these factors, there is a risk that we will not realize gains upon the sale of those or other investment interests that we hold.

Our holdings in Morgan E&P are subject to commodity price declines endemic to oil and gas companies.

The oil and gas business is fundamentally a commodity-based enterprise. This means that the operations and earnings of Morgan E&P, Inc. (“Morgan”) may be significantly affected by changes in prices of oil, gas and natural gas liquids. The prices of these products are also dependent upon local, regional and global events or conditions that affect supply and demand for the relevant commodity. In addition, the pricing of these commodities is highly dependent upon technological improvements in energy production and development, energy efficiency, and seasonal weather patterns. Moreover, as a worldwide commodity, the price of oil and natural gas is also influenced by global demand, changes in currency exchange rates, interest rates, and inflation. Morgan does not employ any hedging strategies in respect of its oil and gas holdings and is therefore subject to price fluctuations resulting from these and other factors. The operational results and financial condition of Morgan, as well as the economic attractiveness of future capital expenditures for new drilling, may be materially adversely affected as a result of lower oil and gas prices.

Table of Contents

We may not be able to make additional investments in our portfolio companies from time to time, which may dilute our interests in such companies.

After our initial investment in a portfolio company, we may be called upon from time to time to provide additional funds to such company, or may have the opportunity to increase our investment in that company through the exercise of a warrant to purchase common stock or through follow-on investments in the debt or equity of that company. We cannot assure you that we will make, or have sufficient funds to make, any such follow-on investments. Any decision by us not to make a follow-on investment or any inability on our part to make such an investment may have a negative impact on a portfolio company in need of investment and may result in a missed opportunity for us to increase our participation in a successful operation. A decision not to make a follow-on investment may also require us to subordinate our debt interest to a new lender or dilute our equity interest in, or reduce the expected yield on, our investment.

We have invested in a limited number of portfolio companies.

The Fund is classified as a “non-diversified” investment company under the 1940 Act, which means we are not limited in the proportion of our assets that may be invested in the securities of a single issuer. As a matter of policy, we generally have not initially invested more than 25% of the value of our net assets in a single portfolio company. However, we would expect that any new investments may exceed this percentage for the immediate future. Moreover, follow-on investments, disproportionate increases or decreases in the fair value of certain portfolio companies or sales of investments may result in more than 25% of our net assets being invested in a single portfolio company at a particular time.

A consequence of a limited number of investments is that changes in business or industry trends or in the financial condition, results of operations or the market’s assessment of any single portfolio company will affect our net asset value and the market price of our common stock to a greater extent than would be the case if we were a “diversified” company holding a greater number of investments.

The lack of liquidity of our privately held securities may adversely affect our business.

Our portfolio investments consist principally of securities that are subject to restrictions on sale because they are not listed or publicly traded securities. If any of these securities were to become publicly traded, our ability to sell them may still be restricted because we acquired them from the issuer in “private placement” transactions or because we may be deemed to be an affiliate of the issuer. We will not be able to sell these securities publicly without the expense and time required to register the securities under the Securities Act and applicable state securities laws, unless an exemption from such registration requirements is available. In addition, contractual or practical limitations may restrict our ability to liquidate our securities in portfolio companies because those securities are privately held and we may own a relatively large percentage of the issuer’s outstanding securities. Sales also may be limited by market conditions, which may be unfavorable for sales of securities of particular issuers or generally. The illiquidity of our investments may preclude or delay any disposition of such securities, which may make it difficult for us to obtain cash equal to the value at which we record our investments if the need arises.

In situations where we hold junior priority liens, our ability to control decisions with respect to our portfolio companies may be limited by lenders holding superior liens. In a default scenario, the value of collateral may be insufficient to repay us after the senior priority lenders are paid in full.

We may make certain loans to portfolio companies that are secured by a junior priority security interest in the same collateral pledged to secure debt owed to lenders with liens senior to ours. Often, the senior lender has procured covenants from the portfolio company prohibiting the incurrence of additional secured debt without the senior lender's consent. As a condition of permitting the portfolio company to incur junior secured indebtedness, the senior lender will require that we, as junior lender, enter into an intercreditor agreement that, among other things, will establish the senior lender's right to control the disposition of any collateral in the event of an insolvency proceeding or other default situation. In addition, intercreditor agreements generally will expressly subordinate junior liens to senior liens as well as the repayment of junior debt to senior debt.

Table of Contents

Because of the control we may cede to senior lenders under intercreditor agreements, we may be unable to control the manner or timing of collateral disposition. In addition, the value of collateral securing our debt investment will ultimately depend on market and economic conditions at the time of disposal, the availability of buyers and other factors. Therefore, we cannot assure you that the proceeds, if any, from the sale or sales of all of the collateral would be sufficient to satisfy the loan obligations secured by our liens. There is also a risk that such collateral securing our investments will be difficult to sell in a timely manner or to appraise. If the proceeds of the collateral are insufficient to repay our loans, then we will have an unsecured claim to the extent of the deficiency against any of the company's remaining assets, which claim will likely be shared with many other unsecured creditors.

As a debt or minority equity investor in a portfolio company, we may have little direct influence over the entity. The stockholders and management of the portfolio company may make decisions that could decrease the value of our portfolio holdings.

We may make both debt and minority equity investments. Should a portfolio company make business decisions with which we disagree, of the stockholders and management of that company take risks or otherwise act in ways that do not serve our interests, the value of our portfolio holdings could decrease and have an adverse effect on our financial position and results of operations.

We may choose to waive or defer enforcement of covenants in the debt securities held in our portfolio, which may cause us to lose all or part of our investment in these companies.

We may structure the debt investments in our portfolio companies to include business and financial covenants placing affirmative and negative obligations on the operation of the company’s business and its financial condition. However, from time to time we may elect to waive breaches of these covenants, including our right to payment, or waive or defer enforcement of remedies, such as acceleration of obligations or foreclosure on collateral, depending upon the financial condition and prospects of the particular portfolio company. These actions may reduce the likelihood of our receiving the full amount of future payments of interest or principal and be accompanied by a deterioration in the value of the underlying collateral as many of these companies may have limited financial resources, may be unable to meet future obligations and may go bankrupt. This could negatively impact our ability to pay dividends, could adversely affect our results of operation and financial condition and cause the loss of all or part of your investment.

We expect to have limited public information regarding the companies in which we may invest.

Our portfolio consists entirely of securities issued by privately-held companies. There is generally little or no publicly available information about such companies, and we must rely on the diligence of Management to obtain the information necessary for our decision to invest in them and in order to monitor them effectively. We cannot assure you that such diligence efforts will uncover all material information about such privately held businesses necessary to make fully informed investment decisions.

Our prospective portfolio companies may be highly leveraged.

Investments in leveraged buyouts and in highly leveraged companies involve a high degree of business and financial risk and can result in substantial losses. A leveraged company’s income and net assets will tend to increase or decrease at a greater rate than if borrowed money were not used. The use of leverage by portfolio companies also magnifies the increase or decrease in the value of our investment as compared to the overall change in the enterprise value of a portfolio company.

Some of our portfolio companies have incurred substantial debt in relation to their equity capital. Such indebtedness generally has a term that will require that the balance of the loan be refinanced when it matures. If a portfolio company cannot generate adequate cash flow to meet the principal and interest payments on its debt or is not successful in refinancing the debt upon its maturity, our investment could be reduced or eliminated through foreclosure on the portfolio company’s assets or by the portfolio company’s reorganization or bankruptcy.

Table of Contents

A substantial portion of the debt incurred by portfolio companies may bear interest at rates that fluctuate in accordance with a stated interest rate index or the prime lending rate. The cash flow of a portfolio company may not be sufficient to meet increases in interest payments on its debt. Accordingly, the profitability of our portfolio companies, as well as the value of our investments in such companies, will depend significantly upon prevailing interest rates. An increase in prevailing interest rates may have an adverse effect on the ability of our portfolio companies to service their floating rate debt and on their profits.

Leverage may impair the ability of our portfolio companies to finance their future operations and capital needs. As a result, the ability of our portfolio companies to respond to changing business and economic conditions and to business opportunities may be limited.

Our business depends on external financing.

Our business requires a substantial amount of cash to operate. We may borrow funds to pay contingencies or expenses or to make investments, or to reinstate our pass-through tax status as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code. We are permitted under the 1940 Act to borrow if, immediately after the borrowing, we have an asset coverage ratio of at least 150%. That is, we may borrow an amount equal to double the fair value of our total net assets (including investments made with borrowed funds). The amount and nature of any such borrowings depend upon a number of factors over which we have no control, including general economic conditions, conditions in the financial markets and the impact of the financing on the tax treatment of our stockholders. The use of leverage, even on a short-term basis, could have the effect of magnifying increases or decreases in our net asset value.

While the “spread” between the current yields on our investments and the cost of any loan would augment the return to our stockholders, if the spread narrows (because of an increase in the cost of debt or insufficient income on our investments), our net investment income, and consequently our ability to provide distributions to our stockholders, could be adversely affected. This may also render us unable to meet our obligations to our lenders, which might then require us to liquidate some or all of our investments. We cannot assure you that we would realize full value for our investments or recoup all of our capital if we needed to liquidate our portfolio investments.

Many financial institutions are unwilling to lend against a portfolio of illiquid, private securities. The make-up of our portfolio has made it more difficult for us to borrow at the level and on the terms that we desire. Our borrowings have historically consisted of a revolving line of credit which has since expired, and a margin account used quarterly to enable us to achieve adequate diversification to maintain our previous pass-through tax status as a RIC. We are attempting to secure liquidity through various means, including the sale of our portfolio assets, as well as debt and equity financing. Although we believe we will be able to obtain sufficient liquidity for our operating expenses for the next twelve months, we could be wrong. If we are wrong, we would have to obtain capital from other sources to pay Fund expenses. We may also be required to sell our portfolio holdings at an inopportune time and at a price that may be less than would be received if such holdings were sold in a more competitive and orderly manner.

The costs of borrowing money may exceed the income from the portfolio securities we purchase with the borrowed money. We will suffer a decline in net asset value if the investment performance of the additional securities purchased with borrowed money fails to cover their cost to the Fund (including any interest paid on the money borrowed). A decline in net asset value could affect our ability to make distributions on our common stock. If we seek to requalify as a RIC and obtain pass-through tax status as a result, our failure to distribute a sufficient portion of our net investment income and net realized capital gains could result in a loss of such pass-through tax status or subject us to a 4% excise tax. If the asset coverage for debt securities issued by the Fund declines to less than 150% (as a result of market fluctuations or otherwise), we may be required to sell a portion of our investments when it is disadvantageous to do so. See Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.

Table of Contents

We have had net investment losses in the past five years.

We have had net investment losses in the past five years, with a net investment loss of $3.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2025. We cannot assure you that we will be able to increase our net assets or generate net investment income. If we fail to increase the Fund’s net assets or generate net investment income, such failure will likely have a material adverse effect upon the Fund, our results of operation, and our financial condition. You could lose all or a substantial amount of your investment in the Fund as a result.

We do not currently intend to recommence our managed distribution policy and you might not receive dividends on your shares.

On March 24, 2009, we announced a suspension of our managed distribution policy and payment of quarterly dividends for an indefinite period. As originally implemented, the policy provided for quarterly dividends at an annualized rate equal to 10% of the Fund’s market value per share as at the end of the preceding calendar year. We subsequently undertook certain changes in our Board and Management. These changes have been pursued, in part, with the objective of increasing the number of attractive investment opportunities to us and revising our investment strategy to include more recurrent cash income producing investments, all of which could ultimately result in the resumption of our managed distribution policy at some time in the future. The implementation of these revisions to our investment strategy and the recurrent generation of cash income from our investments, however, cannot be guaranteed and will not occur if we complete the transformation of Equus into an operating company. If we were unable to resume our managed distribution policy and were further unable to profitably sell or otherwise dispose of our portfolio company investments, you might not receive dividends on your shares.

We operate in a highly competitive market for investment opportunities.

We compete with a large number of private equity funds and mezzanine funds, investment banks and other equity and non-equity-based investment funds, investment entities, foreign investors and individuals and other sources of financing, including traditional financial services companies such as commercial banks. In recent years, the number of investment vehicles seeking small capitalization investments has increased dramatically. Many of our competitors are substantially larger and have considerably greater financial resources than we do, and some may be subject to different and frequently less stringent regulation. As our portfolio size increases, we expect that some of our investments will be larger. We believe that we will face increased competition to participate in these larger transactions. These competitors may have a lower cost of funds and many have access to funding sources that are not available to us. In addition, some of our competitors may have higher risk tolerances or different risk assessments, which could allow them to consider a wider variety of investments and establish more relationships and build their market shares. As a result of this competition, we may not be able to take advantage of attractive investment opportunities from time to time. We cannot assure you that the competitive pressures we face will not have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

An economic downturn could affect our operating results.

An economic downturn may have a particularly adverse effect upon small and medium-sized companies, which are our primary market for investments. During periods of volatile economic conditions, these companies often experience decreased revenues, financial losses, difficulty in obtaining access to financing and increased funding costs. During such periods, these companies also may have difficulty expanding their businesses and operations and may be unable to meet their debt service obligations or other expenses as they become due. Any of the foregoing developments could cause the value of our investments in these companies to decline. In addition, during periods of adverse economic conditions, we may have difficulty accessing financial markets, which could make it more difficult or impossible for us to obtain funding for additional investments. Any of these events could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may experience fluctuations in our quarterly results.

We may experience fluctuations in our quarterly operating results due to a number of factors, including variations in, and the timing of, the recognition of realized and unrealized gains or losses, the degree to which we encounter competition in our markets, the ability to find and close suitable investments and general economic conditions. The volatility of our results is exacerbated by our relatively small number of investments. As a result of these factors, you should not rely on our results for any period as being indicative of performance in future periods.

Table of Contents

The due diligence process that we undertake in connection with our investments may not reveal all facts that may be relevant in connection with an investment.

Before making our investments, we conduct due diligence that we deem reasonable and appropriate based on the facts and circumstances applicable to each investment. The objective of the due diligence process is to identify attractive investment opportunities based on the facts and circumstances surrounding an investment and to prepare a framework that may be used from the date of an acquisition to drive operational achievement and value creation. When conducting due diligence, we evaluate a number of important business, financial, tax, accounting, environmental and legal issues in determining whether or not to proceed with an investment. Our due diligence review with respect to a potential portfolio company typically includes, but is not limited to, a review of historical and prospective financial information including audits and budgets, on-site visits and interviews with management, employees, customers and vendors, a review of business plans and an analysis of the consistency of operations with those plans, and other research relating to the company, management, industry, markets, products and services, and competitors. Outside consultants, legal advisers, accountants and investment banks are expected to be involved in the due diligence process in varying degrees depending on the type of investment. Nevertheless, when conducting due diligence and making an assessment regarding an investment, we are required to rely on resources available to us, including information provided by the portfolio company and, in some circumstances, third party investigations. The due diligence process may at times be subjective, including with respect to newly organized companies for which only limited information is available. Accordingly, we cannot assure you that the due diligence investigation that we will carry out with respect to any investment opportunity will reveal or highlight all relevant facts that may be necessary or helpful in evaluating such investment opportunity. We also cannot assure you that such an investigation will result in an investment being successful.

Risks Related to Our Potential Use of Leverage

The use of leverage may adversely affect our performance.

We may utilize leverage for the Fund or its subsidiaries by borrowing or issuing preferred stock or short-term debt securities. Borrowings and other capital generated from leverage will result in lenders and other creditors with fixed dollar claims on our assets that are superior to the claims of our common shareholders. If the value of our assets increases, then leveraging would cause the net asset value attributable to our common stock to increase more sharply than it would have had we not leveraged. Conversely, if the value of our assets decreases, leveraging would cause net asset value to decline more sharply than it otherwise would have had we not leveraged. Similarly, any increase in our income in excess of interest payable on the borrowed funds would cause our net income to increase more than it would without the leverage, while any decrease in our income would cause net income to decline more sharply than it would have had we not borrowed. Leverage is generally considered a speculative investment technique.

The use of leverage may cause us to sell our portfolio interests prematurely.

If we remain a BDC and borrow monies for our additional portfolio investments, we may secure loans or otherwise borrow funds from conventional banks, other lending institutions, or private parties, which parties may include the sellers of the investment interests being acquired. In the event Equus defaults under any of these borrowing arrangements, our business could be adversely affected as we may be forced to sell a portion of our investments quickly and prematurely at what may be disadvantageous prices to us in order to meet our outstanding payment obligations, the result of which would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

The use of leverage will increase our exposure to changes in market rates of interest.

To date, we have not incurred leverage to acquire portfolio investments. If we begin to take on leverage to make portfolio investments, we will be subject to risks associated with the current interest rate environment and changes in interest rates will affect our cost of capital and net investment income. The use of leverage will also affect our net investment income, which will depend, in part, upon the difference between the rate at which we borrow funds and the rate at which we invest those funds. As a result, we cannot assure you that a significant change in market interest rates would not have a material adverse effect on our net investment income.

Table of Contents

Risks Related to Our Business and Structure

Our ability to invest in private companies may be limited in certain circumstances.

As noted elsewhere herein, we have previously received an authorization from our stockholders to withdraw our election to be classified as a BDC. Although this authorization has since expired, we expect to receive an additional authorization from our stockholders in the future. Accordingly, our management is currently evaluating potential transactions that would result in the transformation of Equus into an operating company instead of a BDC and the withdrawal of our BDC election within this time frame, but we may nevertheless not consummate any such transformation and remain a BDC. If we maintain our status as a BDC and do not complete the transformation to become an operating company or a permanent capital vehicle, we must not acquire any assets other than “qualifying assets” unless, at the time of and after giving effect to such acquisition, at least 70% of our total assets are qualifying assets. A principal category of qualifying assets relevant to our business is securities purchased in transactions not involving any public offering from issuers that qualify as eligible portfolio companies under the 1940 Act. Investments in companies organized outside of the United States or having a principal place of business outside of the United States are also not considered eligible portfolio companies.

Any failure on our part to maintain the Fund’s status as a BDC could reduce our operating flexibility.

If we do not maintain the Fund’s status as a BDC and we do not complete the transformation of Equus into an operating company, we might be regulated as a closed-end investment company under the 1940 Act, which would subject us to substantially more regulatory restrictions under the 1940 Act. This could impose tighter limitations on Equus in terms of the use of leverage and transactions with affiliated entities. Such developments could correspondingly decrease our operating flexibility.

We are not currently qualified as a RIC under the Code and will be subject to corporate level income tax.

As described under Regulated Investment Company Tax Status above, during the fourth quarter of 2024, we elected to not qualify as a RIC. As a result, we will be subject to regular corporate level income tax on our income and gains and will not be permitted to deduct distributions paid to our stockholders. To requalify as a RIC and be entitled to the tax benefits accorded to RICs under the Code, we must meet certain income source, asset diversification and annual distribution requirements applicable to RICs. Further, we must also derive, each taxable year, at least 90% of our gross income from dividends, interest, payments with respect to certain securities loans, gains from the sale of stock or other securities or foreign currencies, or other income derived with respect to our business of investing in such stock or securities or currencies and net income from interests in certain “qualified” publicly traded partnerships. The annual distribution requirement for a RIC is satisfied if we distribute at least 90% of our ordinary net taxable income and realized net short-term capital gains in excess of realized net long-term capital losses, if any, to our stockholders on an annual basis.

As discussed above in “Our business depends on external financing,” we historically have borrowed funds necessary to make qualifying investments to satisfy the Subchapter M diversification requirements. We undertook no such borrowings during 2025.

Table of Contents

Because we intend to distribute substantially all of our income and net realized capital gains to our stockholders, if we continue to operate as a BDC, we will need additional capital to finance our growth.

As noted above, inasmuch as we expect to receive a future authorization from our stockholders to withdraw our election to be classified as a BDC, such withdrawal also means that we will not requalify as a RIC. Our management is currently evaluating potential transactions that would result in the transformation of Equus into an operating company and the withdrawal of our BDC election and RIC status within this time frame, but we may nevertheless not consummate any such transformative transaction and remain a BDC and continue to seek to requalify as a RIC. In order to requalify as a RIC, to avoid payment of excise taxes and to minimize or avoid payment of income taxes, for so long as we maintain our status as a BDC, we intend to distribute to our stockholders substantially all of our net ordinary income and realized net capital gains except for certain net long- term capital gains (which we may retain, pay applicable income taxes with respect thereto, and elect to treat as deemed distributions to our stockholders). As a BDC, we are generally required to meet a coverage ratio of total assets to total senior securities, which includes all of our borrowings and any preferred stock we may issue in the future, of at least 150%. This requirement limits the amount that we may borrow. Because we will continue to need capital to grow our investment portfolio, this limitation may prevent us from incurring debt and require us to issue additional equity at a time when it may be disadvantageous to do so. We cannot assure you that debt and equity financing will be available to us on favorable terms, or at all, and debt financings may be restricted by the terms of any of our outstanding borrowings. In addition, as a BDC, we are generally not permitted to issue equity securities priced below net asset value without stockholder approval. If additional funds are not available to us, we could be forced to curtail or cease new lending and investment activities, and our net asset value could decline.

Our Board of Directors may change our investment objective, operating policies and strategies without prior notice or stockholder approval.

Our Board of Directors has the authority to modify or waive certain of our operating policies and strategies without prior notice (except as required by the 1940 Act) and without stockholder approval. However, absent stockholder approval, we may not change the nature of our business so as to cease to be, or withdraw our election as, a BDC. As described above under “Significant Developments – Authorization to Withdraw BDC Election”, our shareholders have previously provided this authorization and may do so again in the future, although we will not withdraw our election as a BDC unless and until we have entered into a definitive agreement to effect the transformation of Equus into an operating company. We cannot predict the effect any changes to our current operating policies and strategies would have on our business, operating results and value of our stock. Nevertheless, any such effects may adversely affect our business and impact our ability to make distributions.

Risks Related to Our Operation as a BDC

Our ability to enter into transactions with our affiliates is restricted.

As noted above, our stockholders have previously authorized our Board and Chief Executive Officer to withdraw our election to be classified as a BDC and, although this authorization has expired, we expect to receive a further authorization from our stockholders in the future. Accordingly, our management is currently evaluating potential transactions that would result in the transformation of Equus into an operating company and the withdrawal of our BDC election within this time frame, but we may nevertheless not consummate any such transformative transaction and remain a BDC. If we maintain our status as a BDC and do not complete a transformation into an operating company or a permanent capital vehicle, we will continue to be subject to the 1940 Act. As an investment company, we are prohibited under the 1940 Act from participating in certain transactions with certain of our affiliates without the prior approval of our independent directors and, in some cases, the SEC. Any person that owns, directly or indirectly, 5% or more of our outstanding voting securities is our affiliate for purposes of the 1940 Act, and we generally are prohibited from buying or selling any security from or to such affiliate, absent the prior approval of our independent directors. The 1940 Act also prohibits certain “joint” transactions with certain of our affiliates, which could include investments in the same portfolio company (whether at the same or different times), without prior approval of our independent directors and, in some cases, the SEC. If a person acquires more than 25% of our voting securities, we are prohibited from buying or selling any security from or to such person or certain of that person’s affiliates, or entering into prohibited joint transactions with such persons, absent the prior approval of the SEC. Similar restrictions limit our ability to transact business with our officers or directors or their affiliates.

Table of Contents

Regulations governing our operation as a BDC affect our ability to, and the way in which we, raise additional capital.

Our business requires a substantial amount of additional capital. We may acquire additional capital from the issuance of senior securities or other indebtedness, the issuance of additional shares of our common stock or from securitization transactions. However, we may not be able to raise additional capital in the future on favorable terms or at all. We may issue debt securities or preferred securities, which we refer to collectively as “senior securities,” and we may borrow money from banks or other financial institutions, up to the maximum amount permitted by the 1940 Act. The 1940 Act permits us to issue senior securities or incur indebtedness only in amounts such that our asset coverage, as defined in the 1940 Act, equals at least 150% after such issuance or incurrence. Our ability to pay dividends or issue additional senior securities would be restricted if our asset coverage ratio were not at least 150%. If the value of our assets declines, we may be unable to satisfy this test. If that happens, we may be required to liquidate a portion of our investments and repay a portion of our indebtedness at a time when such sales may be disadvantageous.

Changes in the laws or regulations governing our business, or changes in the interpretations thereof, and any failure by us to comply with these laws or regulations, could negatively affect the profitability of our operations.

To the extent we remain a BDC, changes in the laws or regulations or the interpretations of the laws and regulations that govern BDCs, RICs or non-depository commercial lenders, could significantly affect our operations and our cost of doing business. We are subject to federal, state and local laws and regulations and are subject to judicial and administrative decisions that affect our operations, including our loan originations, maximum interest rates, fees and other charges, disclosures to portfolio companies, the terms of secured transactions, collection and foreclosure procedures and other trade practices. If these laws, regulations or decisions change, or if we expand our business into jurisdictions that have adopted more stringent requirements than those in which we currently conduct business, we may have to incur significant expenses in order to comply or we might have to restrict our operations. In addition, if we do not comply with applicable laws, regulations and decisions, we may lose licenses needed for the conduct of our business and be subject to civil fines and criminal penalties, any of which could have a material adverse effect upon our business, results of operations or financial condition.

Risks Related to Our Plan to Transform Equus Into an Operating Company

In our efforts to pursue the transformation of Equus into an operating company, we are exploring and evaluating strategic alternatives for the Fund and we cannot assure you that we will be successful in identifying a strategic alternative, that such strategic alternative will yield additional value for our stockholders or that the process will not have an adverse impact on our business.

In prior years, we announced our plan to effect the restructuring of the Fund as an operating company no longer subject to the 1940 Act, which transaction could take the form of a sale of Equus, a restructuring, a recapitalization, merger, or other business combination, or the conversion of Equus into a permanent capital vehicle. We cannot provide any assurance that the exploration of strategic alternatives will result in the identification or consummation of a transformative transaction of Equus into an operating company or permanent capital vehicle. Similarly, any strategic decision will involve risks and uncertainties, and we cannot provide any assurance that any strategic alternative, if identified, evaluated and consummated, will provide the anticipated benefits or otherwise enhance stockholder value. The process is ongoing and, although we believe we will consummate a transaction that would result in the transformation of Equus into an operating company during 2026, we may be wrong. Our Board of Directors has not set a timetable for completion of the evaluation of a potential transaction.

We expect to incur substantial costs associated with identifying and evaluating potential strategic alternatives incident to a transformative transaction. Any potential transaction would be dependent upon a number of factors that may be beyond our control, including, among other factors, market conditions, industry trends, the interest of third parties in our business, stockholder approval and the availability of financing to potential buyers or to Equus on reasonable terms. The process of exploring strategic alternatives may be time consuming and disruptive to our business operations. We are also subject to other risks in connection with the uncertainty created by the strategic review process, including stock price volatility and the ability to retain qualified employees. We do not currently intend to disclose further developments with respect to this process, unless and until our Board of Directors approves a specific transaction or otherwise concludes the review of strategic alternatives.

Table of Contents

If we are unable to effectively manage the strategic review process, our business, financial condition, liquidity and results of operations could be adversely affected.

If we reorganize as an operating company, we will likely not seek to requalify as a RIC under the Code.

If we were to reorganize as an operating company, we would not seek to reinstate our status as a RIC. As noted above under Regulated Investment Company Tax Status, if we do not requalify as a RIC, we will be subject to corporate income tax, which would substantially reduce the amount of income we might otherwise distribute to our shareholders.

If we reorganize as an operating company or a permanent capital vehicle, we will not continue to operate as a BDC.

We have elected to be classified as a BDC under the 1940 Act. However, if we effect a reorganization of the Fund into an operating company or a permanent capital vehicle, we will seek to terminate our BDC classification. Holders of a majority of the outstanding common stock of the Fund have previously approved our cessation as a BDC under the 1940 Act and authorized our Board to cause the Fund’s withdrawal of its election to be classified as a BDC. Although this authorization has expired, we expect to receive a further such authorization from our stockholders in the future. Nevertheless, if we were to terminate our election to be classified as a BDC and were still determined by the SEC to constitute an “investment company,” we would be subject to significantly greater regulatory requirements and constraints than under those which we presently operate, the result of which could have a material adverse effect on our results and financial condition.

If we reorganize as an operating company or a permanent capital vehicle, we may not be able to utilize our capital losses.

As noted above, we may reorganize Equus as an operating company or a permanent capital vehicle. If we reorganize as an operating company or a permanent capital vehicle, we may lose our ability to offset future income against our cumulative capital losses. If we reorganized as an operating company or a permanent capital vehicle and were unable to offset future income against these capital losses, the result could have a material adverse effect on our future operating results and our financial condition.

If we reorganize as an operating company or a permanent capital vehicle, our stockholders will no longer have certain protections under the 1940 Act.

Table of Contents

If we withdraw the Fund’s election to be treated as a BDC, Equus will no longer be subject to regulation under the 1940 Act, which is designed to protect the interests of investors in investment companies. Specifically, our stockholders would no longer have the following protections of the 1940 Act:

	·	Leverage Limits. We would no longer be subject to the requirement in Section 61 of the 1940 Act that we maintain a ratio of assets to senior securities (such as senior debt or preferred stock) of at least 150% and we would not be limited by statute or regulation to the amount of leverage we could incur.

	·	Range of Investments. We would no longer be prohibited from investing in certain types of companies, such as brokerage firms, insurance, companies, and investment companies.

	·	Changes in Financial Reporting. While the conversion of Equus into an operating company will enable us to consolidate the financial results of entities we control, a change in our method of accounting could also reduce the reported value of our investments in controlled privately- held companies by eliminating our ability to report an increase in the fair value of these holdings.

	·	Protection of Directors and Officers. We would no longer be prohibited from protecting any director or officer against any liability to the Fund or our stockholders arising from willful malfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence, or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of that person’s office, although there are similar limitations under Delaware law, our Certificate of Incorporation, and our Bylaws that would still apply.

	·	Fidelity Bond. We would no longer be required to provide and maintain an investment company blanket bond issued by a reputable fidelity insurance company to protect us against larceny and embezzlement.

	·	Director Independence. We would no longer be required to ensure that a majority of our directors are persons who are not “interested persons,” as that term is defined in the 1940 Act, and certain persons, such as investment bankers, that would be prevented from serving on our Board if we were a BDC. However, assuming we can comply with the NYSE’s listing standards for operating companies, we will remain subject to NYSE listing standards that require the majority of directors of a listed company and all members of its compensation, audit and nominating committees to be “independent” as defined under NYSE rules.

	·	Affiliate Transactions. We would no longer be subject to provisions of the 1940 Act regulating transactions between BDCs and certain affiliates, although we would still be subject to conflict of interest rules and governance procedures that exist under Delaware law and NYSE rules.

	·	Share Issuances. We would no longer be subject to provisions of the 1940 Act restricting our ability to issue shares below NAV or in exchange for services, nor would we be restricted in issuing more than one class of equity securities or instruments that could be converted into other classes of equity securities.

	·	Share Repurchases. We would no longer be restricted under the 1940 Act in our ability to repurchase shares from our stockholders, and would instead be subject only to NYSE rules and Delaware corporate law requirements for such repurchases.

	·	Change of Business. We would be able to change the nature of our business and fundamental investment policies without having to obtain the approval of our stockholders.

	·	Director and Officer Incentives. We would no longer require exemptive relief from the SEC before implementing incentive compensation plans for our key executives and non-executive directors.

Table of Contents

Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments

None.

Item 1C. Cybersecurity

Our operations and other aspects of our business rely heavily on various information technology systems which are largely managed by third parties. We face significant cybersecurity threats, which are continuously increasing in sophistication, including computer viruses, internal and external security breaches, and other cyber-attacks. These threats could disrupt our operations, lead to the loss of confidential information, and hinder our ability to accurately report our financial results in a timely manner. We have adopted a Cybersecurity Policy to create effective administrative, technical, electronic, and physical protections to safeguard the personal information of Company personnel, confidential information concerning our portfolio investments and the integrity of the Company’s information systems.

We have created an Information Security Team, consisting of our Chief Financial Officer and our Chief Compliance Officer, to implement and administer our Cybersecurity Policy. Our Chief Financial Officer and Chief Compliance Officer have each served in senior management positions for a number of years, have received cybersecurity training from time to time in connection with their professional certifications, and have overseen and supervised the activities of external information technology personnel of the Fund during this period. Among the duties and responsibilities of our Information Security Team are the following:

	·	Ensuring that all Equus personnel are aware of the Cybersecurity Policy and agree to adhere to its requirements;

	·	Establishing that information concerning the Fund is stored on encrypted cloud-based servers accessible only by authorized Equus personnel;

	·	Providing that all of the Company’s information systems are backed up daily, with offline copies available in the event that a major security issue arises;

	·	Testing and evaluating cybersecurity safeguards via the use of third-party information technology service providers;

	·	Reviewing the security measures in the Company’s Cybersecurity Policy annually or when there is a change in applicable laws or regulations or in business activities of Equus; and

	·	Conducting training as necessary for all Equus personnel; and

	·	Reporting cybersecurity matters to our Board of Directors who provide oversight of our Information Security Team.

We utilize third-party services and tools for identifying, protecting against, and detecting cyber incidents, and also partner with external vendors to augment our internal security capabilities. Additionally, we engage third-parties to conduct independent assessments of our cybersecurity infrastructure to evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of our detection capabilities, along with our response mechanisms, and overall risk management.

Our approach to managing cybersecurity risks is part of a continuous improvement process, both in the context of cybersecurity and broader operational risk management. This ongoing process, which includes personnel training, is aimed at routinely reviewing and, as necessary, improving, our oversight processes and tools to ensure they remain effective and resilient in their management of cybersecurity risk.

Table of Contents

Material Impact of Cybersecurity Threats

While we have yet to experience a material cybersecurity event, we acknowledge the persistent and evolving nature of these threats, which have the potential to materially impact our business strategy, operations, and financial results adversely. We maintain robust policies and procedures focused on cybersecurity incident management, ensuring timely communication and escalation to all relevant stakeholders. This enables faster response and effective communication, including public disclosure if a material cybersecurity event were to occur.

Board of Directors Oversight

Our Board of Directors oversees risks related to cybersecurity, including the security of our corporate, financial, and portfolio investment information and the steps management is taking to monitor and control these risks. Our Chief Compliance Officer conducts regular meetings with our independent directors to discuss various compliance matters, including any cybersecurity issues, and also delivers a comprehensive Annual Compliance Report to the Board, which report also addresses cybersecurity matters.

Item 2. Properties

We do not own any real estate or other physical properties. Our principal executive offices are located at 700 Louisiana St. 41st Floor, Houston, Texas 77002. Should we remain a BDC and not consummate the transformation of Equus into an operating company, we believe that these leased office facilities are suitable and adequate for our business as it is contemplated to be conducted.

Item 3. Legal Proceedings

From time to time, the Fund is a party to certain proceedings incidental to the normal course of our business including the enforcement of our rights under contracts with our portfolio companies. While the outcome of any potential legal proceedings cannot at this time be predicted with certainty, we do not expect that any such proceedings will have a material effect upon the Fund’s financial condition or results of operations.

Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures

Not applicable.

PART II

Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

Our common stock is listed on the NYSE under the symbol “EQS”. We had approximately 1,640 stockholders as of December 31, 2025, 586 of whom were registered holders. Registered holders do not include those stockholders whose stock has been issued in street name. As of December 31, 2025, our net asset value per share was $1.19.

The following table reflects the high and low closing sales prices per share of our common stock on the NYSE, and net asset value (“NAV”) per share for each of the three years ended December 31, 2025, by quarter:

	2025								2024								2023
	Q1		Q2		Q3		Q4		Q1		Q2		Q3		Q4		Q1		Q2		Q3		Q4
High	$	1.38	$	1.38	$	2.49	$	2.32	$	1.68	$	1.53	$	1.48	$	1.40	$	1.75	$	1.65	$	1.55	$	1.51
Low		1.01		0.78		1.35		1.52		1.42		1.25		1.24		1.04		1.44		1.46		1.35		1.38
NAV		2.52		2.51		1.90		1.19		3.38		3.66		2.96		2.17		2.52		2.96		3.49		3.55

Table of Contents

Stock Performance Graph

The following graph compares the cumulative total return on our common stock with the cumulative total return of the NYSE Composite Index and the S&P 500 Index for the five years ended December 31, 2025. This comparison assumes $100.00 was invested in our common stock at the closing price of our common stock on December 31, 2020 and in the comparison groups and assumes the reinvestment of all cash dividends on the ex-dividend date prior to any tax effect. The stock price performance shown on the graph below is not necessarily indicative of future price performance.

If we requalify as a RIC, we will be required to distribute to our stockholders, in a timely manner, at least 90% of our taxable net investment income each year. If we do not distribute, in a timely manner, 98.2% of our taxable net capital gains and 90% of our taxable net investment income each year (as well as any portion of the respective 2% balances not distributed in the previous year), we will be subject to a 4% non-deductible federal excise tax on certain undistributed income of regulated investment companies. Under the 1940 Act, we are not permitted to pay dividends to stockholders unless we meet certain asset coverage requirements. If taxable net investment income is retained, we will be subject to federal income and excise taxes. We reserve the right to retain net long-term capital gains in excess of net short-term capital losses for reinvestment or to pay contingencies and expenses. Such retained amounts, if any, will be taxable to the Fund as long-term capital gains and our stockholders will be able to claim their proportionate share of the federal income taxes paid by the Fund on such gains as a credit against their own federal income tax liabilities. Stockholders will also be entitled to increase the adjusted tax basis of their fund shares by the difference between their undistributed capital gains and their tax credit.

We invest in companies that are believed to have a high potential for capital appreciation, and we intend to realize the majority of our profits upon the sale of our investments in portfolio companies. Consequently, most of the companies in which we invest do not have established policies of paying annual dividends. However, a portion of the investments in portfolio securities held by the Fund consists of interest-bearing subordinated debt securities or dividend-paying preferred stock.

Table of Contents

Item 6. [Reserved]

Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

We are incorporating by reference Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations in our 2024 Annual Report on Form 10-K for management’s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations for the fiscal year 2024 compared to fiscal year 2023.

Overview

Equus is a BDC that provides financing solutions for privately held middle market and small capitalization companies. We began operations in 1983 and have been a publicly traded closed-end fund since 1991. Our investment objective is to seek the highest total return, consisting of capital appreciation and current income. Consistent with our announced intention to transform Equus into an operating company or a permanent capital vehicle, our shareholders have previously authorized our Board to withdraw our BDC election and, although this authorization has since expired, we expect to receive a further authorization from our stockholders in the future. Nevertheless, we will not withdraw this election unless and until we have entered into a definitive agreement to convert Equus into an operating company or a permanent capital vehicle. Further, we will also require a subsequent affirmative vote from holders of a majority of our outstanding voting shares to enter into any such definitive agreement or change the nature of our business. See Significant Developments – Authorization to Withdraw BDC Election above.

As a BDC, we are required to comply with certain regulatory requirements. For instance, we generally have to invest at least 70% of the Fund’s total assets in “qualifying assets,” including securities of private U.S. companies, certain public U.S. companies with a total market capitalization not in excess of $250 million, cash, cash equivalents, U.S. government securities and short-term high-quality debt investments. Prior to the fourth quarter of 2024, Equus qualified as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code and may seek to requalify as a RIC in the future. To qualify as a RIC, we must meet certain source of income and asset diversification requirements. If we comply with the provisions of Subchapter M, the Fund generally would not have to pay corporate-level income taxes on any income that is distributed to our stockholders.

Investment Income. We generate investment income from interest payable on the debt securities that the Fund holds, dividends received on equity interests in our portfolio companies and capital gains, if any, realized upon sales of equity and, to a lesser extent, debt securities in the investment portfolio. Our equity investments may include shares of common and preferred stock, membership interests in limited liability companies and warrants to purchase additional equity interests. These equity securities may or may not pay dividends, and the exercise prices of warrants that we acquire in connection with debt investments, if any, vary by investment. Our debt investments in portfolio companies may be in the form of senior or subordinated loans and may be unsecured or have a first or second lien on some or all of the assets of the borrower. Our loans typically have a term of three to seven years and bear interest at fixed or floating rates. Interest on these debt securities is generally payable either quarterly or semiannually. Some promissory notes held by the Fund provide that a portfolio company may elect to pay interest in cash or provide that discount interest may accrete in the form of original issue discount or payment-in-kind (PIK) over the life of the notes by adding unpaid interest amounts to the principal balance. Amortization of principal on our debt investments is generally deferred for several years from the date of initial investment. The principal amount of these debt securities and any accrued but unpaid interest generally will become due at maturity. We also earn interest income at market rates on investments in short-term marketable securities. From time to time, we generate income in the form of commitment, origination, structuring, and extension fees in connection with our investments. We recognize all such fees when earned.

Expenses. Currently, our primary operating expenses include director fees and expenses, professional fees, compensation expense, and general and administrative fees. During 2025, 2024 and 2023, we did not incur any non- recurring expenses.

Table of Contents

Non-Operating Subsidiary. We have established Equus Total Return (Canada) Inc. as a wholly-owned subsidiary to facilitate payments to Canadian personnel and contractors who provide services to the Fund. We consider Equus Total Return (Canada) Inc. a disregarded entity for accounting purposes, inasmuch as it does not have active operations.

Operating Activities. We use cash to make new investments and follow-on investments in our existing portfolio companies. We record these investments at cost on the applicable trade date. Realized gains or losses are computed using the specific identification method. On an ongoing basis, we carry our investments in our financial statements at fair value, as determined by our board of directors. See “Critical Accounting Estimates – Valuation of Investments” below. As of December 31, 2025, we had invested 104.3% of our net assets in securities of portfolio companies that constituted qualifying investments under the 1940 Act. At that time, we had invested 0% of our net assets in membership interests in limited liability companies.

Commitments. Under certain circumstances, we make follow-on investments in some of our portfolio companies. As of December 31, 2025, we had no outstanding commitments in our portfolio companies.

Financing Activities. From time to time, we use leverage to finance a portion of our investments. We then repay such debt from the sale of portfolio securities. Under the 1940 Act, we have the ability to borrow funds and issue debt securities or preferred stock that are referred to as senior securities, subject to certain restrictions, including an overall limitation on the amount of outstanding debt, or leverage, relative to equity of 1.5:1. Because of the nature and size of our portfolio investments, we have periodically borrowed funds to make qualifying investments in order to maintain our qualification as a RIC. During the first three quarters of 2024 and all of 2023, we borrowed such funds by accessing a margin account with a securities brokerage firm. We invested the proceeds of these margin loans in high-quality securities such as U.S. Treasury securities until they were repaid. We refer to these high-quality investments as “restricted assets” because they are not generally available for investment in portfolio companies under the terms of borrowing. If, in the future, we seek to requalify as a RIC and cannot borrow funds to make such qualifying investments at the end of any future quarter, we would not so requalify and would, as a non-RIC, be subject to corporate-level income tax on our net investment income and realized capital gains, if any. In addition, our distributions to stockholders would be taxable as ordinary dividends to the extent paid from earnings and profits. See “Federal Income Tax Considerations.”

Distributions. So long as we remain a BDC, save for minor exceptions we will continue to pay out net investment income and/or realized capital gains, if any, on an annual basis as required under the 1940 Act.

Possible Share Repurchase. As a closed-end BDC, our shares of common stock are not redeemable at the option of stockholders, and our shares currently trade at a discount to their net asset value. Our Board has determined that it would be in the best interests of our stockholders to reduce or eliminate this market value discount. Accordingly, we have been authorized to, and may from time to time, repurchase shares of our outstanding common stock (including by means of tender offers or privately negotiated transactions) in an effort to reduce or eliminate this market discount or to increase the net asset value of our shares. We are not required to undertake, and we have not previously undertaken, any such share repurchases, nor do we further anticipate taking any such action in 2025.

Table of Contents

2016 Equity Incentive Plan

On June 13, 2016, our shareholders approved the adoption of our 2016 Equity Incentive Plan (“Incentive Plan”). On January 10, 2017, the SEC issued an order approving the Incentive Plan and certain awards intended to be made thereunder. The Incentive Plan is intended to promote the interests of the Fund by encouraging officers, employees, and directors of the Fund and its affiliates to acquire or increase their equity interest in the Fund and to provide a means whereby they may develop a proprietary interest in the development and financial success of the Fund, to encourage them to remain with and devote their best efforts to the business of the Fund, thereby advancing the interests of the Fund and its stockholders. The Incentive Plan is also intended to enhance the ability of the Fund and its affiliates to attract and retain the services of individuals who are essential for the growth and profitability of the Fund.

The Incentive Plan permits the award of restricted stock as well as common stock purchase options. The maximum number of shares of common stock that are subject to awards granted under the Incentive Plan is 2,434,728 shares. The term of the Incentive Plan will expire on June 13, 2026. On March 17, 2017, we granted awards of restricted stock under the Plan to certain of our directors and executive officers in the aggregate amount of 844,500 shares. The awards are each subject to a vesting requirement over a 3-year period unless the recipient thereof is terminated or removed from their position as a director or executive officer without “cause”, or as a result of constructive termination, as such terms are defined in the respective award agreements entered into by each of the recipients and the Fund. We account for share-based compensation using the fair value method, as prescribed by ASC 718, Compensation—Stock Compensation. Accordingly, for restricted stock awards, we measure the grant date fair value based upon the market price of our common stock on the date of the grant and amortize the fair value of the awards as share-based compensation expense over the requisite service period, which is generally the vesting term. Inasmuch as all existing awards under the Incentive Plan became fully-vested prior to 2021, we recorded no compensation expense relating to awards made under the Incentive Plan for the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023 and 2022. During the year ended December 31, 2025, we awarded an additional 380,523 shares of restricted stock under the Incentive Plan to officers of the Fund and to consultants of Morgan. These awards were fully vested as of the date of grant.

Critical Accounting Estimates

We follow the accounting and reporting guidance in FASB Accounting Standards Codification Topic 946 “Financial Services – Investment Companies.” Our financial statements are based on the selection and application of significant accounting policies, which require management to make significant estimates and assumptions. We believe that the following are some of the more critical judgment areas in the application of our accounting policies that currently affect our financial condition and results of operations.

Table of Contents

Valuation of Investments

For most of our investments, market quotations are not available. With respect to investments for which market quotations are not readily available or when such market quotations are deemed not to represent fair value, our Board has approved a multi-step valuation process each quarter, as described below:

	1.	Each portfolio company or investment is reviewed by our investment professionals;

	2.	With respect to investments with a fair value exceeding $2.5 million that have been held for more than one year, we engage independent valuation firms to assist our investment professionals. These independent valuation firms conduct independent valuations and make their own independent assessments;

	3.	Our Management produces a report that summarizes each of our portfolio investments and recommends a fair value of each such investment as of the date of the report;

	4.	The Audit Committee of our Board reviews and discusses the preliminary valuation of our portfolio investments as recommended by Management in their report and any reports or recommendations of the independent valuation firms, and then approves and recommends the fair values of our investments so determined to our Board for final approval; and

	5.	The Board discusses valuations and determines the fair value of each portfolio investment in good faith based on the input of our Management, the respective independent valuation firm, as applicable, and the Audit Committee.

During the first twelve months after an investment is made, we rely on the original investment amount to determine the fair value unless significant developments have occurred during this twelve-month period which would indicate a material effect on the portfolio company (such as results of operations or changes in general market conditions).

Investments are valued utilizing a yield analysis, enterprise value (“EV”) analysis, net asset value analysis, liquidation analysis, discounted cash flow analysis, or a combination of methods, as appropriate. The yield analysis uses loan spreads and other relevant information implied by market data involving identical or comparable assets or liabilities. Under the EV analysis, the EV of a portfolio company is first determined and allocated over the portfolio company’s securities in order of their preference relative to one another (i.e., “waterfall” allocation). To determine the EV, we typically use a market multiples approach that considers relevant and applicable market trading data of guideline public companies, transaction metrics from precedent M&A transactions and/or a discounted cash flow analysis. The net asset value analysis is used to derive a value of an underlying investment (such as real estate property) by dividing a relevant earnings stream by an appropriate capitalization rate.

For this purpose, we consider capitalization rates for similar enterprises as may be obtained from guideline public companies and/or relevant transactions. The liquidation analysis is intended to approximate the net recovery value of an investment based on, among other things, assumptions regarding liquidation proceeds based on a hypothetical liquidation of a portfolio company’s assets. The discounted cash flow analysis uses valuation techniques to convert future cash flows or earnings to a range of fair values from which a single estimate may be derived utilizing an appropriate discount rate. The measurement is based on the net present value indicated by current market expectations about those future amounts.

In applying these methodologies, additional factors that we consider in fair value pricing our investments may include, as we deem relevant: security covenants, call protection provisions, and information rights; the nature and realizable value of any collateral; the portfolio company’s ability to make payments; the principal markets in which the portfolio company does business; publicly available financial ratios of peer companies; the principal market; and enterprise values, among other factors. Also, any failure by a portfolio company to achieve its business plan or obtain and maintain its financing arrangements could result in increased volatility and result in a significant and rapid change in its value.

Table of Contents

Our general intent is to hold our loans to maturity when appraising our privately held debt investments. As such, we believe that the fair value will not exceed the cost of the investment. However, in addition to the previously described analysis involving allocation of value to the debt instrument, we perform a yield analysis assuming a hypothetical current sale of the security to determine if a debt security has been impaired. The yield analysis considers changes in interest rates and changes in leverage levels of the portfolio company as compared to the market interest rates and leverage levels. Assuming the credit quality of the portfolio company remains stable, the Fund will use the value determined by the yield analysis as the fair value for that security if less than the cost of the investment.

We will record unrealized depreciation on investments when we determine that the fair value of a security is less than its cost basis and will record unrealized appreciation when we determine that the fair value is greater than its cost basis.

Because of the inherent uncertainty of the valuation of portfolio securities which do not have readily ascertainable market values, amounting to $12.5 million and $27.5 million as of December 31, 2025 and 2024, respectively, our fair value determinations may materially differ from the values that would have been used had a ready market existed for the securities. See Note 3 to the financial statements included in Item 8.

We adjust our net asset value for the changes in the value of our publicly held securities, if applicable, and material changes in the value of private securities, generally determined on a quarterly basis or as announced in a press release, and report those amounts to Lipper Analytical Services, Inc. Our net asset value appears in various publications, including Barron’s and The Wall Street Journal.

Current Market Conditions

U.S. GDP increased at an annualized rate of 0.7% in the fourth quarter of 2025, well below consensus estimates of 3.0% for the quarter and substantially lower than GDP growth for the third quarter of 2025 (4.4%), as well as the fourth quarter of 2024 (2.1%). For the full year 2025, GDP growth was 2.1% as compared to 2.8% in 2024. The sharp decrease in GDP during the fourth quarter of 2025 was driven principally by decreases in government and consumer spending, and exports, as well as a decrease in business investment during the quarter. The Congressional Budget Office is projecting GDP growth of 2.5% for 2026 and 1.8% for 2027. The CBO report was released prior to the start of hostilities with Iran and a sharp increase in short-term energy prices which has resulted in a downward adjustment to other, more recent, GDP forecasts. Goldman Sachs, which initially predicted GDP growth of 2.9% for 2026, has now revised its estimate to 2.2%, citing oil price spikes and supply chain risks, and has also increased its estimate of the probability of a U.S. recession to 25%. (Sources: Bureau of Economic Analysis; Goldman Sachs; Congressional Budget Office).

As of February 2026, the U.S. unemployment rate stood at 4.4%, and has remained largely stable for a considerable period, fluctuating between 3.54% and 4.4% for the previous 36 months. With the advent of tariffs, government layoffs, and a more aggressive deportation policy for undocumented immigrants, most economists are projecting the unemployment rate to increase slightly to 4.5% during the remainder of 2026. Moreover, the labor participation rate remains at approximately 62.5%, the same rate as one year previously, and still below the pre-pandemic high of 63.3% of February 2020. Most of the recent employment gains in 2024 and 2025 were due to gains in healthcare and healthcare services, government, and retail trade. (Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; Trading Economics).

Beginning in 2021 and continuing through 2022, consumer prices increased the most in four decades, reaching a high of 8.3%, before steadily declining, more or less, throughout 2023 and continuing through 2025, finishing the year at 2.7%. This trend has continued into January 2026, where the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported an annualized rate of 2.4%. Notwithstanding a projected slowing of the U.S. economy for 2026, most economists are projecting similar rates of inflation for 2026 as compared to 2025, principally due to the continued effect of expected tariffs on imported goods and an increase in short-term energy prices. (Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; Morgan Stanley).

Global merger and acquisition activity in 2025 surged to $4.8 trillion, an increase of 36% from 2024 and the second highest total on record. Artificial intelligence and large, multibillion dollar transactions dominated the theme of M&A activity during the year and are expected to continue to do so in 2026. Analysts are cautiously optimistic for 2026, as potential headwinds may materialize in private credit markets, ongoing regulatory scrutiny of larger transactions, and a recent spike in energy prices, any or all of which may disrupt consolidation activity in the short to medium term. (Sources: S&P Global; Ernst & Young).

Table of Contents

Private equity activity plateaued at $2.1 trillion in 2025, matching the same amount in 2024, which was only up slightly over 2023, all of which years are substantially below the post-pandemic highs of 2021 and 2022. Private equity fundraising was lower again for the fourth straight year due to a weak exit environment that has constrained liquidity, with fund flows down 23% in 2025 as compared to 2024, which was itself down 30% from 2023. (Source: S&P Global)

During 2025, our net asset value decreased from $2.17 per share as of December 31, 2024 to $1.19 per share as of December 31, 2025. As of December 31, 2025, our common stock was trading at a 18.5% premium to our net asset value as compared to a 49.3% discount as of December 31, 2024.

Over the past several years, we have executed certain initiatives to enhance liquidity, achieve a lower operational cost structure, provide more assistance to portfolio companies and realize certain of our portfolio investments. Specifically, we changed the composition of our Board of Directors and Management, terminated certain of our follow- on investments, internalized the management of the Fund, suspended our managed distribution policy, modified our investment strategy to pursue shorter term liquidation opportunities, pursued non-cash investment opportunities, and sold certain of our legacy and underperforming investment holdings. We believe these actions continue to be necessary to protect capital and liquidity in order to preserve and enhance shareholder value. Because our Management is internalized, certain of our expenses should not increase commensurate with an increase in the size of the Fund and, therefore, if we remain a BDC, we expect to achieve efficiencies in our cost structure if we are able to grow the Fund.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

The Company defines cash equivalents as securities that are readily convertible into known amounts of cash and near their maturity that they present insignificant risk of changes in value because of changes in interest rates. Generally, only securities with a maturity of three months or less from the date of purchase would qualify, with limited exceptions. The Company deems that certain money market funds, U.S. Treasury bills, repurchase agreements and other high-quality, short-term debt securities would qualify as cash equivalents (See Note 2 to the financial statements.)

We generate cash primarily from maturities, sales of securities and borrowings, as well as capital gains realized upon the sale of portfolio investments. We use cash primarily to make additional investments, either in new companies or as follow-on investments in the existing portfolio companies and to pay the dividends to our stockholders.

Because of the nature and size of the portfolio investments, we have, until the fourth quarter of 2024, periodically borrowed funds to make qualifying investments to maintain our prior tax status as a RIC. As a RIC, we often borrowed such funds by utilizing a margin account with a securities brokerage firm. If we seek to requalify as a RIC, there is no assurance that such arrangement will be available in the future. If the Fund is unable to borrow funds to make qualifying investments, it may no longer requalify as a RIC. The Fund would then continue to be subject to corporate income tax on its net investment income and realized capital gains, and distributions to stockholders would be subject to income tax as ordinary dividends.

The Fund has the ability to borrow funds and issue forms of senior securities representing indebtedness or stock, such as preferred stock, subject to certain restrictions. Net taxable investment income and net taxable realized gains from the sales of portfolio investments are intended to be distributed at least annually, to the extent such amounts are not reserved for payment of expenses and contingencies or to make follow-on or new investments.

The Fund reserves the right to retain net long-term capital gains in excess of net short-term capital losses for reinvestment or to pay contingencies and expenses. Such retained amounts, if any, will be taxable to the Fund as long- term capital gains and stockholders will be able to claim their proportionate share of the federal income taxes paid on such gains as a credit against their own federal income tax liabilities. Stockholders will also be entitled to increase the adjusted tax basis of their Fund shares by the difference between their undistributed capital gains and their tax credit.

Table of Contents

We are evaluating the impact of current market conditions on our portfolio company valuations and their ability to provide current income. We have followed valuation techniques in a consistent manner; however, we are cognizant of current market conditions that might affect future valuations of portfolio securities. Our operating cash flow and cash on hand is not sufficient to meet operating requirements or to finance routine capital expenditures through the next twelve months. We are therefore seeking liquidity from the sale of our portfolio interests, as well as seeking external debt and equity financing from third parties. Should either or both of the foregoing events not occur as contemplated, the Fund will not have the necessary funds to maintain normal operations and, therefore, substantial doubt would exist about the Fund’s ability to continue as a going concern. Further, if we effect a transformation of the Fund into an operating company as described under “Significant Developments – Authorization to Withdraw BDC Election” above, we may utilize some or a substantial portion of our current liquidity in connection with a contemplated transaction as payment of the purchase price and to pay associated legal, due diligence, accounting, and other fees. Further, we may borrow funds from financial institutions or other providers of debt capital to provide and pay for a part of the consideration and expenses necessary to effect a conversion of Equus into an operating company.

Year Ended December 31, 2025

As of December 31, 2025, we had total assets of $21.3 million, of which $17.3 million were invested in portfolio investments and $0.1 million were invested in cash and cash equivalents.

Operating Activities. We used $2.1 million in cash for operating activities in 2025, principally due to $1.6 million used in connection with the purchase of investments, $2.2 million paid in fees to professional advisors, directors and other fees, which amount was offset by $1.7 million received from sales in investments.

Financing Activities. We generated $2.0 million in cash from financing activities for 2025, principally in connection with borrowings.

We did not declare any dividends in 2025.

Year Ended December 31, 2024

As of December 31, 2024, we had total assets of $29.9 million, of which $27.5 million were invested in portfolio investments and $0.3 million were invested in cash and cash equivalents.

Operating Activities. We generated $38.2 million in cash for operating activities in 2024 principally due to $45.1 million sales in net investments in U.S. Treasury bills, offset by $2.2 million in investments, along with $4.6 million in fees to professional advisors, directors and other fees.

Financing Activities. We used $45.0 million in cash from financing activities for 2024, principally in connection with repayments net of borrowings on margin.

We did not declare any dividends in 2024.

Results of Operations Investment Income and Expense

Year Ended December 31, 2025 as compared to Year Ended December 31, 2024

Total income from portfolio securities was $1.4 million for 2025 and $1.3 million for 2024. Compensation expense increased to $2.1 million in 2025 from $1.8 million in 2024.

As a result of the factors described above, net investment loss after expenses was $3.7 million for 2025 as compared to a net investment loss of $3.3 million in 2024.

Table of Contents

Summary of Portfolio Investment Activity

New and Follow-On Investments

Year Ended December 31, 2025

During 2025, we made a $1.5 million investment in CitroTech, Inc. (formerly, General Enterprise Ventures, Inc.) and a $2.8 million investment in North American Energy Opportunities Corp. (“ NAEOC”).

The following table includes summarizes new and follow-on investment activity during the year ended December 31, 2025 (in thousands):

	Investment Activity
	New Investments		Existing Investments
Portfolio Company	Cash	Non-Cash	Follow-On Cash	PIK	Total
CitroTech, Inc.	$ 1,500	$ -	$ -	$ 94	$ 1,594
North American Energy Opportunites Corp	-	2,750	-	-	2,750

	$ 1,500	$ 2,750	$ -	$ 94	$ 4,344

Year Ended December 31, 2024

During 2024, we made a $2.2 million investment in Morgan E&P, Inc.

The following table includes summarizes new and follow-on investment activity during the year ended December 31, 2024 (in thousands):

	Investment Activity
	New Investments		Existing Investments
Portfolio Company	Cash	Non-Cash	Follow-On Cash	PIK	Total
Morgan E&P, LLC	$ -	$ -	$ 2,247	$ -	$ 2,247

	$ -	$ -	$ 2,247	$ -	$ 2,247

Realized Gains and Losses

Year Ended December 31, 2025

During 2025, we realized capital gains of $0.4 million as a result of disposition of shares with a cost of $0.2 million we held in CitroTech, Inc. We realized a capital loss of $4.3 million in connection with our sale of Equus Energy, LLC in the first quarter of 2025. Further, we also realized capital losses of $2.8 million as a result of the write-off of our investment in NAEOC.

Table of Contents

Year Ended December 31, 2024

We realized capital gains of $138 thousand as a result of disposition of U.S. Treasury bills.

Year Ended December 31, 2023

We realized capital gains of $34 thousand as a result of disposition of U.S. Treasury bills.

Changes in Unrealized Appreciation of Portfolio Securities

Year Ended December 31, 2025

During 2025, we recorded a decrease of $3.5 million in net unrealized appreciation, from an unrealized appreciation of $8.9 million at December 31, 2024 to a net unrealized appreciation of $5.4 million at December 31, 2025. Such change in unrealized appreciation resulted primarily from the increase in fair value of our holdings in CitroTech, Inc. of $5.4 million and the reversal of an unrealized loss of $4.1 million when we sold our interest in Equus Energy, offset by the decrease in the fair value of our holdings in Morgan E&P, Inc. of $13.0 million, principally due to a lower forward price curve for oil, as well as the elimination of certain reserves due to limited production.

Year Ended December 31, 2024

During 2024, we recorded a decrease of $15.6 million in net unrealized appreciation, from an unrealized appreciation of $24.5 million at December 31, 2023 to a net unrealized appreciation of $8.9 million at December 31, 2024. Such change in unrealized appreciation resulted primarily from the decrease in the fair value of our holdings in Morgan E&P, Inc. of $9.6 million, principally due to a lower forward price curve for oil, as well as the reclassification of certain of its proved reserves from producing to non-producing. The change in unrealized appreciation also resulted from the decrease in fair value of our holding in Equus Energy, LLC of $6.0 million, principally due to decreases in the forward curve for oil and natural gas and its effect on the economic prospects of Equus Energy regarding future development of its oil and gas properties. See Subsequent Events below where we sold our interest in Equus Energy in March 2025 for a combination of cash and preferred stock valued at $4.0 million.

Year Ended December 31, 2023

During 2023, we recorded an increase of $17.0 million in net unrealized appreciation, from an unrealized appreciation of $7.5 million at December 31, 2022 to a net unrealized appreciation of $24.5 million at December 31, 2023. Such change in unrealized appreciation resulted primarily from the increase in the fair value of our holdings in Morgan E&P, Inc. of $22.6 million, principally due to substantial increases in Morgan’s reserves and the reclassification of certain of its proved reserves from undeveloped to producing. The increase in the fair value of Morgan was offset by the decrease in fair value of our holding in Equus Energy, LLC of $5.7 million, principally due to decreases in the forward curve for natural gas and its effect on the economic prospects of Equus Energy regarding future development of its gas properties.

Table of Contents

Portfolio Securities

As of December 31, 2025, we had active investments in the following portfolio companies:

CitroTech, Inc.

On February 10, 2025, we purchased from CitroTech, Inc., (formerly, General Enterprise Ventures, Inc.) a developer of fire suppression products (“CITR”), a 1- year senior convertible promissory note bearing interest at the rate of 10% per annum, in exchange for $1.5 million in cash (“CITR Note”). Contemporaneously with the purchase of the CITR Note, the Fund also received a common stock purchase warrant to acquire an aggregate of 312,500 shares of CITR common stock at an exercise price of $3.00 per share (“CITR Warrant”). The shares of CITR are traded on the NYSE American Stock Exchange under the symbol ‘CITR’. In the third quarter of 2025, we converted the CITR Note and interest, as accrued, into 664,041 CITR shares, and in the fourth quarter of 2025, we sold 73,002 of our CITR shares. As of December 31, 2025, the CITR share price stood at $8.08 per share. Applying this price to the value of our remaining CITR shares and a Black-Scholes valuation analysis to the CITR Warrant, we valued our debt and equity interest in CITR at $6.8 million at December 31, 2025.

Morgan E&P, Inc.

Morgan E&P, LLC (“Morgan”) was organized by the Fund on April 3, 2023 as a Delaware limited liability company and a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Fund. In 2025, we reorganized Morgan as a Delaware corporation taxed according to the requirements of Subchapter C of the Internal Revenue Code. On May 22, 2023, Morgan completed the acquisition of 4,747.52 net acres, in the Bakken/Three Forks formation in the Williston Basin of North Dakota, and acquired approximately 1,100 additional acres on September 26, 2023. The acreage and associated mineral rights were acquired from Pro Energy I LLC (“Pro Energy”), a company whose principals have decades of oil and gas experience and who have themselves drilled over 1,800 horizontal wells in the Williston Basin over a 10-year period. In May 2023, we entered into an agreement with Morgan to provide it up to $10.0 million in senior debt financing, which amount was subsequently amended to $10.5 million, subject to a schedule of disbursements and draws that we determine. As of December 31, 2024, we advanced Morgan $10.5 million under this facility. During 2025, the forward price curve for oil decreased compared to 2024. In addition, Morgan experienced substantial challenges with production and, as a consequence of these two factors, certain reserves were eliminated for consideration as being noneconomic. As a result, the fair value of our debt and equity interest in Morgan decreased from $23.5 million at December 31, 2024 to $10.5 million at December 31, 2025.

Off Balance Sheet Arrangements

Our current office space lease since December 31, 2020 is on a month-to-month basis. Rent expense, inclusive of common area maintenance costs, was $132,000 for the year ended December 31, 2025.

Contractual Obligations

As of December 31, 2025, we had no outstanding commitments to our portfolio company investments.

Dividends

So long as we remain a BDC, we will continue to pay out net investment income and/or realized capital gains, if any, on an annual basis as required under the 1940 Act.

Table of Contents

Subsequent Events

Our Management performed an evaluation of the Fund’s activity through the date the financial statements were issued, noting the following subsequent events:

On February 7, 2025, we issued a 1-year convertible promissory note in the original principal amount of $2.0 million bearing interest at the rate of 10% per annum (“Equus Note”). On February 7, 2026, the Equus Note matured and remains unpaid. The Equus Note requires the lender to provide written notice of default but, as of the date of filing of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, no such notice has been provided.

During the period commencing January 1, 2026 until the filing of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, we sold 122,581 of our shares of CitroTech, Inc.

Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk

We are subject to financial market risks, including changes in interest rates with respect to investments in debt securities and outstanding debt payable, as well as changes in marketable equity security prices. In the future, we may invest in companies outside the United States, including in Europe and Asia, which would give rise to exposure to foreign currency value fluctuations. We do not use derivative financial instruments to mitigate any of these risks. The return on investments is generally not affected by foreign currency fluctuations.

Our investments in portfolio securities consist of some fixed-rate debt securities. Since the debt securities are generally priced at a fixed rate, changes in interest rates do not directly affect interest income. In addition, changes in market interest rates are not typically a significant factor in the determination of fair value of these debt securities, since the securities are generally held to maturity. We determine their fair values based on the terms of the relevant debt security and the financial condition of the issuer.

A major portion of our investment portfolio consists of equity investments in private companies. Modest changes in public market equity prices generally do not significantly impact the estimated fair value of these investments. However, significant changes in market equity prices can have a longer-term effect on valuations of private companies, which could affect the carrying value and the amount and timing of gains or losses realized on these investments. A small portion of the investment portfolio may also consist of common stocks in publicly traded companies. These investments are directly exposed to equity price risk, in that a hypothetical ten percent change in these equity prices would result in a similar percentage change in the fair value of these securities.

We are classified as a “non-diversified” investment company under the 1940 Act, which means we are not limited in the proportion of our assets that may be invested in the securities of a single user. The value of one segment called “Energy” includes one portfolio company and was 63.4% of our net asset value, 49.2% of our total assets and 60.8% of our investments in portfolio company securities (at fair value) as of December 31, 2025. Changes in business or industry trends or in the financial condition, results of operations, or the market’s assessment of any single portfolio company will affect the net asset value and the market price of our common stock to a greater extent than would be the case if we were a “diversified” company holding numerous investments.

Table of Contents

Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data

Index to Financial Statements

	Page
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm - (BDO USA, P.C.; Houston, TX; PCAOB ID#243)	38
Balance Sheets As of December 31, 2025 and 2024	40
Statements of Operations For the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023	41
Statements of Changes in Net Assets For the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023	42
Statements of Cash Flows For the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023	43
Statements of Selected Per Share Data and Ratios - For the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022 and 2021	44
Schedule of Investments December 31, 2025	45
Schedule of Investments December 31, 2024	47
Notes to Financial Statements	49
Schedules of Investments in and Advances to Affiliates For the year ended December 31, 2025	76

Table of Contents

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

Shareholders and Board of Directors

Equus Total Return, Inc.

Houston, Texas

Opinion on the Financial Statements

We have audited the accompanying balance sheets of Equus Total Return, Inc. (the “Fund”), including the schedules of investments, as of December 31, 2025 and 2024, the related statements of operations, changs in net assets, and cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2025, and the related notes and financial statement schedules listed in Tabe of Contents in Item 15(a)(1) (collectively referred to as the “ financial statements”). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Fund at December 31, 2025 and 2024, and the results of its operations, changes in net assets, and its cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2025, and the selected per share data and ratios for each of the five years in the period ended December 31, 2025, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

Going Concern Uncertainty

The accompanying financial statements have been prepared assuming that the Fund will continue as a going concern. As discussed in Note 2 to the financial statements, the Fund has insufficient operating cash flows and cash on hand that raise substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern. Management’s plans in regard to these matters are also described in Note 2. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.

Basis for Opinion

These financial statements and the selected per share data and ratios are the responsibility of the Fund’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Fund’s financial statements and the selected per share data and ratios based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB) and are required to be independent with respect to the Fund in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements and the selected per share data and ratios are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Fund is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audits we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Fund’s internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.

Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements and the selected per share data and ratios, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements and the selected per share data and ratios. Our procedures include confirmation of securities owned as of December 31, 2025, and 2024 by correspondence with the custodians. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements and the selected per share data and ratios. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

Table of Contents

Critical Audit Matter

The critical audit matter communicated below is a matter arising from the current period audit of the financial statements that was communicated or required to be communicated to the audit committee and that: (1) relates to accounts or disclosures that are material to the financial statements and (2) involved our especially challenging, subjective, or complex judgments. The communication of the critical audit matter does not alter in any way our opinion on the financial statements, taken as a whole, and we are not, by communicating the critical audit matter below, providing a separate opinion on the critical audit matter or on the accounts or disclosures to which it relates.

Valuation of Limited Liability Company Investments

As described in Note 3 to the financial statements, the Fund’s control investment portfolio has a total estimated fair value of $10.5 million as of December 31, 2025, which includes a $10.5 million investment in Morgan E&P, Inc. (“Morgan”) debt and a $0.0 of investment in common stock of Morgan. Management has determined that the investment is a Level 3 investment in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification Topic 820 and utilizes inputs that are unobservable and significant to the fair value measurement. Management engaged an independent third-party valuation firm and reserve engineers to assist in the determination of the fair value estimate of the Fund’s investment in Morgan.  

We identified the valuation of the Fund’s investment in Morgan as a critical audit matter. The principal considerations for our determination are significant judgments involved in the determination of (i) the valuation techniques utilized to value the investment,  which include the guideline transaction method and the discounted cash flow method, and (ii) the use of unobservable inputs in these valuation techniques, including acreage value multiples, production multiples, estimated future production, and discount rates. Auditing these elements was complex because it involved especially subjective auditor judgment, including the use of personnel with specialized skills and knowledge. 

The primary procedures we performed to address this critical audit matter included: 

· Testing the reasonableness of the estimated future production by: (i) comparing to historical production volumes and future production decline analyses (ii) comparing to historical production volumes and historical production decline analyses derived from analogous wells and (iii) assessing the consistency with evidence obtained in other areas of the audit.

· Utilizing personnel with specialized skill and knowledge in valuation to assist in: (i) evaluating the appropriateness of the valuation techniques applied to the investment in Morgan, (ii) evaluating whether unobservable inputs utilized by management, including the acreage value multiples, production multiples, and discount rates were reasonable by comparing to independent data sources, and (iii) performing an independent evaluation of production multiples and acreage value multiples and comparing to management’s measurement of the fair value of Morgan.

/s/ BDO USA, P.C.

We have served as the Fund's auditor since 2014.

Houston, Texas

April 16, 2026

Table of Contents

EQUUS TOTAL RETURN, INC.

BALANCE SHEETS

	December 31, 2025			December 31, 2024

(in thousands, except shares and per share amounts)
Assets
Investments in portfolio securities at fair value:
Control investments (cost at $10,500 and $18,611, respectively)	$	10,500		$	27,500
Non-affiliate investments (cost at $1,418 and $0, respectively)		6,776			—
Total investments in portfolio securities at fair value		17,276			27,500
Cash and cash equivalents		133			262
Accounts receivable from affiliates		1,145			678
Accrued interest		2,748			1,470
Other assets		36			26
Total assets		21,338			29,936
Liabilities and net assets
Accounts payable and other		414			332
Accrued compensation		3			1
Accounts payable to related parties		1,371			93
Notes payable		2,123			—
Warrant liability, at fair value		857			—
Total liabilities		4,768			426

Commitments and contingencies (See Note 7)

Net assets
Preferred stock, $.001 par value per share; 10,000,000 shares authorized as of December 31, 2025 and December 31, 2024
Common stock, $.001 par value per share; 100,000,000 shares authorized as of December 31, 2025 and December 31, 2024, and 13,966,696 and 13,586,173 shares outstanding as of December 31, 2025 and December 31, 2024, respectively



Common stock, par value	$	14		$	14
Capital in excess of par value		76,009			74,785
Accumulated deficit		(59,453	)		(45,289	)
Total net assets	$	16,570		$	29,510
Shares of common stock issued and outstanding, $.001 par value, 100,000,000 and 50,000,000 shares authorized, respectively		13,967			13,586
Net asset value per share	$	1.19		$	2.17

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements

Table of Contents

EQUUS TOTAL RETURN, INC.

STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

	Year Ended December 31,
(in thousands, except per share amounts)	2025			2024			2023
Investment income:
Control investments	$	1,278		$	1,245		$	225
Non-affiliate investments		94			—			—
Total investment income		1,372			1,245			225
Interest income		1			29			24
Total investment income		1,373			1,274			249

Expenses:
Compensation expense		2,148			1,761			1,937
Professional fees		1,118			1,439			1,110
Transaction costs		307			—			—
Professional liability expenses		80			582			661
Director fees and expenses		334			317			334
General and administrative expenses		191			189			133
Mailing, printing and other expenses		176			127			71
Taxes		24			36			13
Interest expense		683			138			25
Total expenses		5,061			4,589			4,284

Net investment loss		(3,688	)		(3,315	)		(4,035	)

Net realized loss (gain):
Control investments		(4,111	)		—			—
Non-affiliate investments		(2,381	)		—			—
Other		(155	)		—			—
U.S. Treasury Bills		—			138			34
Net realized (loss) gain		(6,647	)		138			34

Net unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of portfolio securities:
Control investments		(8,889	)		(15,600	)		16,950
Non-affiliate investments		5,357			—			—
Net change in net unrealized appreciation (depreciation) of portfolio securities		(3,532	)		(15,600	)		16,950

Net change in net unrealized depreciation on warrant liability		(297	)		—			—

Net decrease in net assets resulting from operations	$	(14,164	)	$	(18,777	)	$	12,949

Net decrease in net assets resulting from operations per share:
Basic	$	(1.03	)	$	(1.38	)	$	0.96
Diluted	$	(1.03	)	$	(1.38	)	$	0.96
Weighted average shares outstanding:
Basic		13,706			13,586			13,526
Diluted		13,706			13,586			13,526

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements

Table of Contents

EQUUS TOTAL RETURN, INC.

STATEMENTS OF CHANGES IN NET ASSETS

	Common Stock
(in thousands)	Number of Shares		Par Value		Capital in Excess of Par Value		Accumulated Deficit			Total Net Assets

Balances as of January 1, 2023		13,518		13		74,685		(39,461	)		35,237

Issuance of shares		68		1		100		—			101

Net increase in net assets resulting from operations		—		—		—		12,949			12,949

Balances as of December 31, 2023		13,586		14		74,785		(26,512	)		48,287

Net increase in net assets resulting from operations		—		—		—		(18,777	)		(18,777	)

Balances as of December 31, 2024		13,586		14		74,785		(45,289	)		29,510

Share-based incentive compensation		381		—		619		—			619

Shares subscribed but not issued						298					298

Issuance of warrants		—		—		307		—			307

Net decrease in net assets resulting from operations		—		—		—		(14,164	)		(14,164	)

Balances as of December 31, 2025		13,967	$	14	$	76,009	$	(59,453	)	$	16,570

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

Table of Contents

EQUUS TOTAL RETURN, INC.

STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS


	Year Ended December 31,
(in thousands)	2025			2024			2023
Cash flow from operating activities:
Net decrease in net assets resulting from operations	$	(14,164	)	$	(18,777	)	$	12,949
Adjustments to reconcile net decrease in net assets resulting from operations to net cash used in operating activities:
Net realized loss:
Control investments		4,111			—			—
Non-affiliate investments		2,381			—			—
Other		155			—			—
U.S. Treasury Bills		—			(138	)		(34	)
Net change in unrealized (appreciation) depreciation of portfolio securities:
Control investments		8,889			15,600			(16,950	)
Non-affiliate investments		(5,357	)		—			—
Net change in unrealized appreciation of warrant payable		297						—
Share-based incentive compensation		270			—			—
Purchase of portfolio securities		(1,594	)		(2,247	)		(8,253	)
Write-off of receivable from portfolio company		(155	)		—			—
PIK interest payable		182			—			—
Amortization of debt discount		501						—
Transaction costs		307			—			—
Net proceeds from dispositions of portfolio securities		1,794			—
Sales (purchases) of U.S. Treasury Bills, net		—			45,093			(38,923	)
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable from affiliates		180			(539	)		211
Accrued interest receivable		(1,278	)		(1,245	)		(225	)
Other assets		(10	)		366			(11	)
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities		84			132			(227	)
Accounts payable to related parties		1,278			(11	)		103
Net cash (used in) provided by operating activities		(2,129	)		38,234			(51,359	)
Cash flows from financing activities:
Borrowings under margin account		—			161,907			85,923
Repayments under margin account		—			(206,862	)		(46,966	)
Issuance of notes payable and warrants liability		2,000			—			101
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities		2,000			(44,955	)		39,058
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents		(129	)		(6,721	)		(12,301	)
Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash at beginning of period		262			6,983			19,284
Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period	$	133		$	262		$	6,983
Non-cash operating and financing activities:
Shares subscribed but not issued	$	298		$	—		$	—
Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information:
Interest paid in kind on note payable	$	182		$	138		$	25

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

Table of Contents

EQUUS TOTAL RETURN, INC.

SELECTED PER SHARE DATA AND RATIOS

	Year ended December 31,
		2025			2024			2023			2022			2021

Investment income		$	0.10		$	0.09		$	0.02		$	—		$	—
Expenses			0.37			0.33			0.32			0.27			0.26

Net investment loss			(0.27	)		(0.24	)		(0.30	)		(0.27	)		(0.26	)

Net realized gain (loss)			(0.48	)		0.01			0.01			0.00			0.03
Net change in unrealized appreciation of portfolio securities			(0.26	)		(1.15	)		1.25			0.19			0.42
Net change in unrealized depreciation of warrant liability			(0.02	)		—			—			—			—
Net (decrease) increase in net assets resulting from operations			(1.03	)		(1.38	)		0.96			(0.08	)		0.19
Capital transactions:
Shares issued for portfolio securities			—			—			—			—			—
Dilutive effect of shares issued									(0.02	)
Dilutive effect of warrants issued			0.05			—			—			—			—
Decrease (increase) in net assets resulting from capital transactions			0.05			—			(0.02	)		—			—
Net increase (decrease) in net assets			(0.98	)		(1.38	)		0.94			(0.08	)		0.19
Net assets at beginning of period			2.17			3.55			2.61			2.69			2.50
Net assets at end of period, basic and diluted		$	1.19		$	2.17		$	3.55		$	2.61		$	2.69
Weighted average number of shares outstanding during period,
in thousands			13,706			13,586			13,526			13,518			13,518
Market price per share:
Beginning of period		$	1.10		$	1.45		$	1.43		$	2.38		$	2.16
End of period		$	1.41		$	1.10		$	1.45		$	1.43		$	2.38
Selected information and ratios:
Ratio of expenses to average net assets			21.97	%		11.80	%		8.87	%		10.14	%		9.77	%
Ratio of net investment loss to average net assets			(16.01	%)		(8.52	%)		(8.36	%)		(10.14	%)		(9.77	%)
Ratio of net increase (decrease) in net assets resulting from operations to average net assets			(61.48	%)		(48.28	%)		26.82	%		(3.15	%)		7.38	%
Total return on market price ⁽¹⁾			28.18	%		(24.14	%)		1.40	%		(39.92	%)		10.19	%

⁽¹⁾ Total return = [(ending market price per share + year-to-date dividends paid - beginning market price per share) / beginning market price per share].

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

Table of Contents

EQUUS TOTAL RETURN, INC.

SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS

DECEMBER 31, 2025

(in thousands, except share data)

Name and Location of			Date of Initial					Cost of		Fair
Portfolio Company ⁽¹⁾	Industry		Investment		Investment	Principal		Investment		Value⁽²⁾

Control Investments: Majority-owned ⁽³⁾:
Morgan E&P, Inc. Houston, TX		Energy		April 2023	6,800,000 common stock ⁽⁵⁾				—		—
					12% senior secured promissory note due 5/26 ⁽⁵⁾⁽⁶⁾	$	10,500	$	10,500	$	10,500
									10,500		10,500
Total Control Investments: Majority-owned (represents 60.8% of total investments at fair value)									10,500		10,500
Non-Affiliate Investments: Less than 5% owned ⁽⁴⁾:
CitroTech, Inc. Pomona, CA		Environmental		February 2025	Warrants (exercisable into 312,500 common stock) ⁽⁵⁾		—		—		2,000
					591,039 shares common stock		—		1,418		4,776
									1,418		6,776
Total Non-Affiliate Investments (represents 39.2% of total investments at fair value)									1,418		6,776
Total Investments								$	11,918	$	17,276

⁽¹⁾Under Section 55(a) of the 1940 Act, qualifying assets must represent at least 70% of the total assets at the time of acquisitions of any non-qualifying. As of December 31, 2025, none of the Fund’s total assets were considered non-qualifying assets.

⁽²⁾See Note 3 to the financial statements, Valuation of Investments.

⁽³⁾Majority owned investments are generally defined under the 1940 Act as companies in which we own more than 50% of the voting securities of such company.

⁽⁴⁾Non-affiliate investments are generally defined under the 1940 Act as companies in which we own less than 5% of the voting securities of such company.

⁽⁵⁾ Level 3 Portfolio Investment.

⁽⁶⁾Income producing.

Table of Contents

SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS – (Continued)

DECEMBER 31, 2025

(in thousands, except share data)

Our portfolio securities are restricted from public sale without prior registration under the Securities Act of 1933 (hereafter, the “Securities Act”) or an exemption from registration thereunder. We typically negotiate certain aspects of the method and timing of the disposition of our investment in each portfolio company, including registration rights and related costs.

As a business development company (“BDC”), we may invest up to 30% of our assets in non-qualifying portfolio investments, as permitted by the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “1940 Act”). Specifically, we may invest up to 30% of our assets in entities that are not considered “eligible portfolio companies” (as defined in the 1940 Act), including companies located outside of the United States, entities that are operating pursuant to certain exceptions under the 1940 Act, and publicly-traded entities with a market capitalization exceeding $250 million. As of December 31, 2025, we had invested 81.0% of our assets in securities of portfolio companies that constituted qualifying investments under the 1940 Act. As of December 31, 2025, none of our investments are considered non-qualifying assets as all of our investments are in enterprises that are considered eligible portfolio companies the 1940 Act. We provide significant managerial assistance to our portfolio companies that comprise 60.8% of the total value of the investments in portfolio securities as of December 31, 2025.

We are classified as a “non-diversified” investment company under the 1940 Act, which means we are not limited in the proportion of our assets that may be invested in the securities of a single issuer. The value of one segment called “Energy” includes one portfolio company and was 63.4% of our net asset value, 49.2% of our total assets and 60.8% of our investments in portfolio company securities (at fair value) as of December 31, 2025. Changes in business or industry trends or in the financial condition, results of operations, or the market’s assessment of any single portfolio company will affect the net asset value and the market price of our common stock to a greater extent than would be the case if we were a “diversified” company holding numerous investments.

Our investments in portfolio securities consist of the following types of securities as of December 31, 2025 (in thousands):

Type of Securities	Cost		Fair Value		Fair Value as Percentage of Net Assets

Secured and subordinated debt		10,500		10,500		63.4	%
Warrants		—		2,000		12.1	%
Common stock		1,418		4,776		28.8	%
Total	$	11,918	$	17,276		104.3	%

The following is a summary by industry of the Fund’s investments in portfolio securities as of December 31, 2025 (in thousands):

Industry		Fair Value		Fair Value as Percentage of Net Assets
	Energy	$	10,500		63.4	%
	Environmental		6,776		40.9	%
	Total	$	17,276		104.3	%

Table of Contents

EQUUS TOTAL RETURN, INC.

SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS

DECEMBER 31, 2024

(in thousands, except share data)

Name and Location of			Date of Initial					Cost of		Fair
Portfolio Company ⁽¹⁾	Industry		Investment		Investment	Principal		Investment		Value⁽²⁾

Control Investments: Majority-owned ⁽³⁾:
Equus Energy, LLC ⁽⁴⁾ Houston, TX		Energy		December 2011	Member interest (100%)			$	8,111	$	4,000
Morgan E&P, LLC ⁽⁴⁾ Houston, TX		Energy		April 2023	Member interest (100%)				—		13,000
					12% senior secured promissory note due 5/26 ⁽⁵⁾	$	10,500		10,500		10,500
									10,500		23,500
Total Control Investments: Majority-owned (represents 100% of total investments at fair value)									18,611		27,500
Total Investments								$	18,611	$	27,500

⁽¹⁾Under Section 55 (a) of the 1940 Act, qualifying assets must represent at least 70% of total assets at the time of acquisitions of any non-qualifying assets. As of December 31, 2024, none of the Fund's total assets were considered non- qualifying assets.

⁽²⁾See Note 3 to the financial statements, Valuation of Investments.

⁽³⁾Majority-owned investments are generally defined under the Investment Company Act of 1940 as companies in which we own more than 50% of the voting securities of the company.

⁽⁴⁾Level 3 Portfolio Investments

⁽⁵⁾Income-producing

Table of Contents

SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS – (Continued)

DECEMBER 31, 2024

(in thousands, except share data)

Our portfolio securities are restricted from public sale without prior registration under the Securities Act of 1933 (hereafter, the “Securities Act”). We typically negotiate certain aspects of the method and timing of the disposition of our investment in each portfolio company, including registration rights and related costs.

As a business development company (“BDC”), we may invest up to 30% of our assets in non-qualifying portfolio investments, as permitted by the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “1940 Act”). Specifically, we may invest up to 30% of our assets in entities that are not considered “eligible portfolio companies” (as defined in the 1940 Act), including companies located outside of the United States, entities that are operating pursuant to certain exceptions under the 1940 Act, and publicly-traded entities with a market capitalization exceeding $250 million. As of December 31, 2024, we had invested 91.9% of our assets in securities of portfolio companies that constituted qualifying investments under the 1940 Act. As of December 31, 2024, none of our investments are considered non-qualifying assets as all of our investments are in enterprises that are considered eligible portfolio companies the 1940 Act. We provide significant managerial assistance to our portfolio companies that comprise 100% of the total value of the investments in portfolio securities as of December 31, 2024.

We are classified as a “non-diversified” investment company under the 1940 Act, which means we are not limited in the proportion of our assets that may be invested in the securities of a single issuer. The value of one segment called “Energy” included our two remaining portfolio companies and was 93.2% of our net asset value, 91.9% of our total assets and 100% of our investments in portfolio company securities (at fair value) as of December 31, 2024. Changes in business or industry trends or in the financial condition, results of operations, or the market’s assessment of any single portfolio company will affect the net asset value and the market price of our common stock to a greater extent than would be the case if we were a “diversified” company holding numerous investments.

Our investments in portfolio securities consist of the following types of securities as of December 31, 2024 (in thousands):

Type of Securities	Cost		Fair Value		Fair Value as Percentage of Net Assets

Limited liability company investments	$	8,111	$	17,000		57.6	%
Secured and subordinated debt		10,500		10,500		35.6	%

Total	$	18,611	$	27,500		93.2	%

The following is a summary by industry of the Fund’s investments in portfolio securities as of December 31, 2024 (in thousands):

Industry		Fair Value		Fair Value as Percentage of Net Assets
	Energy	$	27,500		93.2	%
	Total	$	27,500		93.2	%

Table of Contents

EQUUS TOTAL RETURN, INC.

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

DECEMBER 31, 2025, 2024 AND 2023

(1) ORGANIZATION AND BUSINESS PURPOSE

About the Company—Equus Total Return, Inc. (“we,” “us,” “our,” “Equus” the “Company” and the “Fund”), a Delaware corporation, was formed on August 16, 1991. Our shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) under the symbol ‘EQS’. Our investment strategy, as approved by our shareholders, is based on a total return investment objective. This strategy seeks to provide the highest total return, consisting of capital appreciation and current income. We are authorized under our Certificate of Incorporation to issue up to 100,000,000 shares of common stock and up to 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock. As of December 31, 2025, we had 13,966,696 shares of common stock outstanding and no shares of preferred stock outstanding.

We attempt to maximize the return to stockholders in the form of current investment income and long-term capital gains by investing in the debt and equity securities of companies with a total enterprise value between $5.0 million and $75.0 million, although we may engage in transactions with smaller or larger investee companies from time to time. We seek to invest primarily in companies pursuing growth either through acquisition or organically, leveraged buyouts, management buyouts and recapitalizations of existing businesses or special situations. Our income- producing investments consist principally of debt securities including subordinated debt, debt convertible into common or preferred stock, or debt combined with warrants and common and preferred stock. Debt and preferred equity financing may also be used to create long-term capital appreciation through the exercise and sale of warrants received in connection with the financing. We seek to achieve capital appreciation by making investments in equity and equity- oriented securities issued by privately-owned companies in transactions negotiated directly with such companies. Given market conditions over the past several years and the performance of our portfolio, our Management and Board of Directors believe it prudent to continue to review alternatives to refine and further clarify the current strategies.

We elected to be treated as a BDC under the Investment Company Act of 1940 Act (“1940 Act”), although our shareholders have previously authorized us to withdraw this election and, although such authorization has expired, will likely do so again in the future. Prior to the fourth quarter of 2024, we qualified as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) for federal income tax purposes and, therefore, were not required to pay corporate income taxes on any income or gains that we would have distributed distribute to our stockholders. During the fourth quarter of 2024, we elected to not qualify as a RIC and, consequently, we are subject to normal corporate rates of taxation of our income and gains and are not permitted to deduct distributions paid to our stockholders.

We have certain wholly owned taxable subsidiaries (“Taxable Subsidiaries”) that were created to help us maintain our RIC status, each of which holds one or more portfolio investments listed on our Schedules of Investments. The purpose of these Taxable Subsidiaries was to permit us to hold certain income- producing investments or portfolio companies organized as limited liability companies, or LLCs, (or other forms of pass-through entities) and still satisfy the RIC tax requirement that at least 90% of our gross revenue for income tax purposes must consist of investment income. Absent the Taxable Subsidiaries, a portion of the gross income of these income-producing investments or of any LLC (or other pass-through entity) portfolio investment, as the case may be, would flow through directly to us for the 90% test. Since we have elected to not qualify as a RIC, the income of these Taxable Subsidiaries may be taxable to Equus, which is now classified as a Subchapter C or corporation. To the extent that such income did not consist of investment income, it could jeopardize our ability to requalify as a RIC and, therefore, cause us to incur federal income taxes as described above. The income of the LLCs (or other pass-through entities) owned by Taxable Subsidiaries is taxed to the Taxable Subsidiaries and does not flow through to us, thereby helping us obtain (or preserve, as the case may be) RIC status and the resultant tax advantages. We do not consolidate the Taxable Subsidiaries for income tax purposes, with the exception of Texas Margin Tax, which is an entity level tax. The Taxable Subsidiaries may generate income tax expense because of the Taxable Subsidiaries’ ownership of the portfolio companies. We reflect any such income tax expense on our Statements of Operations.

Table of Contents

(2) LIQUIDITY AND FINANCING ARRANGEMENTS

As of December 31, 2025, we had cash and cash equivalents of $0.1 million. Our operating cash flow and cash on hand is not sufficient to meet operating requirements or to finance routine capital expenditures through the next twelve months. We are therefore seeking liquidity from the sale of our portfolio interests, as well as seeking external debt and equity financing from third parties. Should any or all of the foregoing events not occur as contemplated, the Fund will not have the necessary funds to maintain normal operations and, therefore, substantial doubt would exist about the Fund’s ability to continue as a going concern.

(3) SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

The following is a summary of significant accounting policies followed by the Fund in the preparation of its financial statements:

Use of Estimates—The preparation of financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”) requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Although we believe the estimates and assumptions used in preparing these financial statements and related notes are reasonable in light of known facts and circumstances, actual results could differ from those estimates. We have identified valuation of investments and revenue recognition as our most critical accounting estimates.

Consolidation—In accordance with Article 6 of Regulation S-X under the Securities Act of 1933, we do not consolidate portfolio company investments. Under Accounting Standards Committee (“ASC”) 946, we are precluded from consolidating any entity other than another investment company, except that ASC 946 provides for the consolidation of a controlled operating company that provides substantially all of its services to the investment company or its consolidated subsidiaries.

Fair Value Measurements— Fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date and sets out a fair value hierarchy. The fair value hierarchy gives the highest priority to quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3). Inputs are broadly defined as assumptions market participants would use in pricing an asset or liability. The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are described below:

Level 1—Unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities that the reporting entity has the ability to access at the measurement date.

Level 2—Inputs other than quoted prices within Level 1 that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly; and fair value is determined through the use of models or other valuation methodologies.

Level 3—Inputs are unobservable for the asset or liability and include situations where there is little, if any, market activity for the asset or liability. The inputs into the determination of fair value are based upon the best information under the circumstances and may require significant management judgment or estimation.

Table of Contents

Valuation of Investments—For most of our investments, market quotations are not available. With respect to investments for which market quotations are not readily available or when such market quotations are deemed not to represent fair value, our Board has approved a multi-step valuation process each quarter, as described below:

	1.	Each portfolio company or investment is reviewed by our investment professionals;

	2.	With respect to investments with a fair value exceeding $2.5 million that have been held for more than one year, we engage independent valuation firms to assist our investment professionals. These independent valuation firms conduct independent valuations and make their own independent assessments;

	3.	Our Management produces a report that summarizes each of our portfolio investments and recommends a fair value of each such investment as of the date of the report;

	4.	The Audit Committee of our Board reviews and discusses the preliminary valuation of our portfolio investments as recommended by Management in their report and any reports or recommendations of the independent valuation firms, and then approves and recommends the fair values of our investments so determined to our Board for final approval; and

	5.	The Board discusses valuations and determines the fair value of each portfolio investment in good faith based on the input of our Management, the respective independent valuation firm, as applicable, and the Audit Committee.

We determine the fair value of equity securities, warrants, and other ownership interests in our portfolio companies using valuation methods appropriate for each investment. When an instrument is traded in an active public market, we generally use the quoted market price as of the measurement date. For privately held or infrequently traded equity positions, we may consider factors such as the portfolio company’s financial performance, recent transactions, market conditions, and the rights and preferences of the security. For derivative securities such as warrants, we estimate the value of warrant positions using option-pricing techniques.

Other investments are valued utilizing a yield analysis, enterprise value (“EV”) analysis, net asset value analysis, liquidation analysis, discounted cash flow analysis, or a combination of methods, as appropriate. The yield analysis uses loan spreads and other relevant information implied by market data involving identical or comparable assets or liabilities. Under the EV analysis, the EV of a portfolio company is first determined and allocated over the portfolio company’s securities in order of their preference relative to one another (i.e., “waterfall” allocation). To determine the EV, we typically use a market multiples approach that considers relevant and applicable market trading data of guideline public companies, transaction metrics from precedent M&A transactions and/or a discounted cash flow analysis. The net asset value analysis is used to derive a value of an underlying investment (such as real estate property) by dividing a relevant earnings stream by an appropriate capitalization rate. For this purpose, we consider capitalization rates for similar properties as may be obtained from guideline public companies and/or relevant transactions. The liquidation analysis is intended to approximate the net recovery value of an investment based on, among other things, assumptions regarding liquidation proceeds based on a hypothetical liquidation of a portfolio company’s assets. The discounted cash flow analysis uses valuation techniques to convert future cash flows or earnings to a range of fair values from which a single estimate may be derived utilizing an appropriate discount rate. The measurement is based on the net present value indicated by current market expectations about those future amounts.

In estimating the fair value of our equity interest in Morgan, we have given equal emphasis to an income approach that examines expected cash flows from the development of leasehold interests held by Morgan, with a market approach that examines comparable acreage values. Our management received advice and assistance from a third-party valuation firm to support our determination of the fair value of this investment.

Table of Contents

In addition to the previously described analysis involving allocation of value to the debt instrument, we perform a yield analysis assuming a hypothetical current sale of the security to determine if a debt security has been impaired. The yield analysis considers changes in interest rates and changes in leverage levels of the portfolio company as compared to the market interest rates and leverage levels.

We record unrealized depreciation on investments when we determine that the fair value of a security is less than its cost basis and will record unrealized appreciation when we determine that the fair value is greater than its cost basis.

In certain cases, the inputs used to measure fair value may fall into different levels of the fair value hierarchy. In such cases, an investment’s level within the fair value hierarchy is based on the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value measurement. Our assessment of the significance of a particular input to the fair value measurement in its entirety requires judgment and considers factors specific to the investment.

Investments for which prices are not observable are generally private investments in the debt and equity securities of operating companies. One of the primary valuation methods used to estimate the fair value of these Level 3 investments is the discounted cash flow method (although a liquidation analysis, option theoretical, or other methodology may be used when more appropriate). The discounted cash flow approach to determine fair value (or a range of fair values) involves applying an appropriate discount rate(s) to the estimated future cash flows using various relevant factors depending on investment type, including comparing the latest arm’s length or market transactions involving the subject security to the selected benchmark credit spread, assumed growth rate (in cash flows), and capitalization rates/multiples (for determining terminal values of underlying portfolio companies). The valuation based on the inputs determined to be the most reasonable and probable is used as the fair value of the investment. The determination of fair value using these methodologies may take into consideration a range of factors including, but not limited to, the price at which the investment was acquired, the nature of the investment, local market conditions, trading values on public exchanges for comparable securities, current and projected operating performance, financing transactions subsequent to the acquisition of the investment and anticipated financing transactions after the valuation date. In the case of our investment in Morgan E&P, Inc. (“Morgan”), we also examine acreage values in comparable transactions and assess the impact upon the working interests held by Morgan. The determination of fair value using these methodologies may take into consideration a range of factors including, but not limited to, the price at which the investment was acquired, the nature of the investment, local market conditions, trading values on public exchanges for comparable securities, current and projected operating performance, financing transactions subsequent to the acquisition of the investment and anticipated financing transactions after the valuation date. In the case of our holding of shares and warrants in CitroTech, Inc. (“CITR”), we examined the trading price of the CITR shares on the relevant measurement date and, in the case of the warrants, employed a Black-Scholes analysis with a 1- and 2-year stock variance to determine value.

Table of Contents

To assess the reasonableness of the discounted cash flow approach, the fair value of equity securities, including warrants, in portfolio companies may also consider the market approach—that is, through analyzing and applying to the underlying portfolio companies, market valuation multiples of publicly-traded firms engaged in businesses similar to those of the portfolio companies. The market approach to determining the fair value of a portfolio company’s equity security (or securities) will typically involve: (1) applying to the portfolio company’s trailing twelve months (or current year projected) EBITDA, a low to high range of enterprise value to EBITDA multiples that are derived from an analysis of publicly-traded comparable companies, in order to arrive at a range of enterprise values for the portfolio company; (2) subtracting from the range of calculated enterprise values the outstanding balances of any debt or equity securities that would be senior in right of payment to the equity securities we hold; and (3) multiplying the range of equity values derived therefrom by our ownership share of such equity tranche in order to arrive at a range of fair values for our equity security (or securities). Application of these valuation methodologies involves a significant degree of judgment by Management.

Due to the inherent uncertainty of determining the fair value of Level 3 investments that do not have a readily available market value, the fair value of the investments may differ significantly from the values that would have been used had a ready market existed for such investments and may differ materially from the values that may ultimately be received or settled. Further, such investments are generally subject to legal and other restrictions or otherwise are less liquid than publicly traded instruments. If we were required to liquidate a portfolio investment in a forced or liquidation sale, we might realize significantly less than the value at which such investment had previously been recorded. With respect to Level 3 investments, where sufficient market quotations are not readily available or for which no or an insufficient number of indicative prices from pricing services or brokers or dealers have been received, we undertake, on a quarterly basis, our valuation process as described above.

We assess the levels of the investments at each measurement date, and transfers between levels are recognized on the subsequent measurement date closest in time to the actual date of the event or change in circumstances that caused the transfer. There were no transfers to or from Level 3 for the years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024.

As of December 31, 2025, investments measured at fair value on a recurring basis are categorized in the tables below based on the lowest level of significant input to the valuations:

				Fair Value Measurements as of December 31, 2025
(in thousands)		Total		Quoted Prices in Active Markets for Identical Assets (Level 1)		Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)
Assets
Investments:
Control investments	$	10,500	$	—	$	10,500
Non-affiliate investments		6,776		4,776		2,000
Total investments	$	17,276	$	4,776	$	12,500

As of December 31, 2024, investments measured at fair value on a recurring basis are categorized in the tables below based on the lowest level of significant input to the valuations:

				Fair Value Measurements as of December 31, 2024
(in thousands)		Total		Quoted Prices in Active Markets for Identical Assets (Level 1)		Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2)		Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)
Assets
Investments:
Control investments	$	27,500	$	—	$	—	$	27,500
Total investments	$	27,500	$	—		—	$	27,500

Table of Contents

The following table provides a reconciliation of fair value changes during 2025 for all investments for which we determine fair value using significant unobservable (Level 3) inputs:

	Fair value measurements using significant unobservable inputs (Level 3)
(in thousands)	Control Investments			Non-affiliate Investments			Total
Fair value as of January 1, 2025	$	27,500		$	—		$27,500
Realized gain (loss)		(4,111	)		(2,750	)	(6,861)
Change in unrealized appreciation		(12,889	)		2,000		(10,889)
Purchases of portfolio securities		—			2,750		2,750
Transfers in (out) of Level 3		—			—		-
Fair value as of December 31, 2025	$	10,500		$	2,000		$12,500

The following table provides a reconciliation of fair value changes during 2024 for all investments for which we determine fair value using significant unobservable (Level 3) inputs:

	Fair value measurements using significant unobservable inputs (Level 3)
(in thousands)	Control Investments			Total
Fair value as of January 1, 2024	$	40,853		$40,853
Change in unrealized appreciation		(15,600	)	(15,600)
Purchases of portfolio securities		2,247		2,247
Fair value as of December 31, 2024	$	27,500		$27,500

The following table provides a reconciliation of fair value changes during 2023 for all investments for which we determine fair value using significant unobservable (Level 3) inputs:

	Fair value measurements using significant unobservable inputs (Level 3)
(in thousands)	Control Investments		Total
Fair value as of January 1, 2023	$	15,650	$15,650
Change in unrealized appreciation		16,950	16,950
Purchases of portfolio securities		8,253	8,253
Fair value as of December 31, 2023	$	40,853	$40,853

Table of Contents

Fair value measurements can be sensitive to changes in one or more of the valuation inputs. Changes in discount rates, EBITDA or EBITDA multiples (or revenue or revenue multiples), each in isolation, may change the fair value of certain of our investments. Generally, an increase/(decrease) in market yields, discount rates, or an increase/(decrease) in EBITDA or EBITDA multiples (or revenue or revenue multiples) may result in a corresponding increase/(decrease), respectively, in the fair value of certain of our investments. In the case of our holdings in Morgan and Equus Energy, we may also consider acreage value, proved reserve multiples, daily production multiples, and discount rates.

Finally, industry trends, market forecasts, and comparable transactions in sectors in which we hold a Level 3 investment are also taken into account when assessing the value of these investments.

The following table summarizes the significant non-observable inputs in the fair value measurements of our Level 3 investments by category of investment and valuation technique as of December 31, 2025:

Range

(in thousands)

Fair Value

Valuation Techniques

Unobservable Inputs

Minimum

Maximum

Weighted Average

Equity Investments

Guideline Public Company Method

Proved Reserve Multiple

6,615x

9,080x

7,848x

Daily Production Multiple

23,801x

28,451x

26,126x

Morgan E&P, Inc.

$ -

Guideline Transaction Method

Proved Reserve Multiple

8,969x

11,937x

10,453x

Daily Production Multiple

35,000x

45,333x

40,167x

Acreage Value (per acre)

$ 2,000

$ 6,000

$ 4,000

Discounted Cash Flow

Discount Rate

11.8%

13.3%

12.55%

Senior debt

Morgan E&P, Inc.

10,500

Yield analysis

Company specific yield

10.46%

12.0%

11.23%

Warrant

CitroTech, Inc. (formerly General Enterprise Ventures, Inc.)

2,000

Black-Scholes

Volatility

38.2%

123.6%

80.9%

12,500

Table of Contents

Range

(in thousands)

Fair Value

Valuation Techniques

Unobservable Inputs

Minimum

Maximum

Weighted Average

Limited liability company investments

Acreage Value (per acre)

$1,000

$4,000

$1,784

Equus Energy, LLC

$ 4,000

Guideline Transaction Method

Proved Reserve Multiple

6.2x

10.8x

8.65x

Daily Production Multiple

24,921.7x

45,307.1x

40,787.19x

Discounted Cash Flow

Discount Rate

10.9%

Transaction Price

$4,000

Guideline Public Company Method

Proved Reserve Multiple

6,415x

7,342x

6,878.5x

Daily Production Multiple

29,948x

40,946x

35,447x

Morgan E&P, Inc.

13,000

Guideline Transaction Method

Proved Reserve Multiple

5,304x

8,786x

7,045x

Daily Production Multiple

22,297x

32,595x

27,446x

Discounted Cash Flow

Discount Rate

11.7%

12.6%

12.15%

Senior debt

Morgan E&P, Inc.

10,500

Yield analysis

Company specific yield

11.52%

12.0%

11.76%

$ 27,500

The various weighted averages in the table above were determined based on acreage, reserves, production and, in the case of discount rates, an arithmetic average of minimum and maximum rates. Because of the inherent uncertainty of the valuation of portfolio securities which do not have readily ascertainable market values, our fair value determinations may materially differ from the values that would have been used had a ready market existed for the securities.

Table of Contents

Financial instruments not measured at fair value

In estimating the fair values of its financial instruments not measured at fair value, the Company used the following methods and assumptions.

The carrying amount for cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable from affiliates, accrued interest, other assets, accounts payable and other, accrued compensation and accounts payable to related parties approximates fair value due to the short-term maturity of these assets and liabilities. The fair value of notes payable approximates carrying values as the notes have almost reached their maturity date.

The following table presents the carrying amounts and estimated fair values of the Company’s financial instruments not measured at fair value as of December 31, 2025 and 2024:

Estimated Fair Value

(in thousands)

Carrying

SEC Form 10-K filed by Equus Total Return Inc.