Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Shares Gap Up to $5.47

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $5.47, but opened at $5.67. Hecla Mining shares last traded at $5.68, with a volume of 488,970 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on HL shares. Roth Mkm lowered their target price on Hecla Mining from $6.25 to $6.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $10.25 target price on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Cibc World Mkts upgraded shares of Hecla Mining to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Finally, CIBC boosted their price target on shares of Hecla Mining from $6.75 to $7.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, six 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 company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $7.13.

Hecla Mining Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $5.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $5.17. The firm has a market cap of $3.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -36.37 and a beta of 2.00.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.01 by $0.01. Hecla Mining had a negative net margin of 5.56% and a negative return on equity of 0.42%. The company had revenue of $245.66 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $208.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.03 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Hecla Mining will post 0.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Hecla Mining Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were paid a dividend of $0.0138 per share. This represents a $0.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. This is an increase from Hecla Mining’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.00. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -33.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hecla Mining

In other news, CFO Russell Douglas Lawlar sold 11,679 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.91, for a total transaction of $57,343.89. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 393,894 shares in the company, valued at $1,934,019.54. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Hecla Mining news, VP Robert Denis Brown sold 24,792 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.91, for a total transaction of $121,728.72. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 607,649 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,983,556.59. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Russell Douglas Lawlar sold 11,679 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.91, for a total value of $57,343.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 393,894 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,934,019.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 67,105 shares of company stock worth $329,486. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Continuum Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Hecla Mining by 313.6% in the second quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 6,551 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 4,967 shares during the period. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining in the second quarter valued at about $41,000. Ballentine Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Hecla Mining during the second quarter worth about $54,000. Oak Family Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Hecla Mining during the second quarter worth about $55,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in Hecla Mining by 27.7% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,447 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 2,916 shares in the last quarter. 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.