Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Trading Up 5.1% – What’s Next?

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL)’s share price was up 5.1% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $5.80 and last traded at $5.86. Approximately 10,630,040 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 8% from the average daily volume of 11,541,591 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.57.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on HL. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $11.50 target price on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Roth Mkm dropped their target price on shares of Hecla Mining from $6.60 to $6.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. TD Securities downgraded shares of Hecla Mining from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $6.50 to $5.50 in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Hecla Mining from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 17th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $7.75.

Hecla Mining Trading Up 3.3 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The firm has a market cap of $3.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 115.12 and a beta of 1.94. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $5.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.84.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The basic materials company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.05 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $249.66 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $229.21 million. Hecla Mining had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 3.10%. Analysts predict that Hecla Mining will post 0.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hecla Mining Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.0038 per share. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.00%.

Insider Transactions at Hecla Mining

In other news, CFO Russell Douglas Lawlar sold 16,333 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.18, for a total value of $84,604.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 297,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,543,551.94. The trade was a 5.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Kurt Allen sold 9,195 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.18, for a total value of $47,630.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 104,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $541,372.16. This represents a 8.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 57,915 shares of company stock valued at $300,000 in the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hecla Mining

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Hecla Mining by 30.7% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,351 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 1,961 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 173,616 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $852,000 after purchasing an additional 2,297 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 25,370 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $125,000 after purchasing an additional 2,457 shares during the period. KBC Group NV grew its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 19.2% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 18,075 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $121,000 after purchasing an additional 2,909 shares during the period. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 28.6% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 13,229 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 2,944 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.01% of the company’s stock.

Hecla Mining Company Profile

Hecla Mining Company, together with its subsidiaries, provides precious and base metal properties in the United States, Canada, Japan, Korea, and China. The company mines for silver, gold, lead, and zinc concentrates, as well as carbon material containing silver and gold for custom smelters, metal traders, and third-party processors; and doré containing silver and gold.