Intech Investment Management LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL)

Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) by 85.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 335,662 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 154,307 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.05% of Hecla Mining worth $1,648,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of HL. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Hecla Mining by 771.8% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,013 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 4,438 shares during the period. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Hecla Mining during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Hecla Mining during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in Hecla Mining during the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Hecla Mining by 30.7% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,351 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,961 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.01% of the company’s stock.

Hecla Mining Stock Performance

Shares of HL stock opened at $5.76 on Friday. Hecla Mining has a 12 month low of $4.22 and a 12 month high of $7.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 115.12 and a beta of 1.94. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $5.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $5.83.

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

Hecla Mining Cuts Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Hecla Mining

In other news, VP Kurt Allen sold 9,195 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.18, for a total value of $47,630.10. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 104,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $541,372.16. The trade was a 8.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert Krcmarov bought 6,570 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $5.29 per share, with a total value of $34,755.30. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 331,856 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,755,518.24. The trade was a 2.02 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 57,915 shares of company stock valued at $300,000. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HL has been the topic of a number of research reports. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $11.50 target price on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Friday, February 14th. TD Securities downgraded shares of Hecla Mining from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the company from $6.50 to $5.50 in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com raised shares of Hecla Mining from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 17th. Finally, Roth Mkm cut 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 note on Tuesday, February 18th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $7.75.

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.