Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Shares Gap Up to $5.92

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $5.92, but opened at $6.10. Hecla Mining shares last traded at $6.19, with a volume of 1,994,340 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on HL shares. Roth Mkm lowered their price objective on Hecla Mining from $6.25 to $6.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Cibc World Mkts raised shares of Hecla Mining to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $10.25 target price on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, CIBC increased their price target on shares of Hecla Mining from $6.75 to $7.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $7.13.

Hecla Mining Price 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 company’s fifty day moving average is $5.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.23. The stock has a market cap of $3.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -41.53 and a beta of 2.00.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.01 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $245.66 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $208.80 million. Hecla Mining had a negative return on equity of 0.42% and a negative net margin of 5.56%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.03 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Hecla Mining will post 0.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Hecla Mining Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were issued a $0.0138 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. This is a positive change from Hecla Mining’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.00. This represents a $0.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.87%. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -33.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Michael L. Clary sold 30,634 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.91, for a total value of $150,412.94. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 351,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,728,182.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Michael L. Clary sold 30,634 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.91, for a total value of $150,412.94. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 351,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,728,182.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Russell Douglas Lawlar sold 11,679 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.91, for a total value of $57,343.89. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 393,894 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,934,019.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 67,105 shares of company stock worth $329,486 in the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 2,916 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 0.9% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 338,040 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,639,000 after acquiring an additional 2,939 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 8.2% during the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 44,553 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $216,000 after acquiring an additional 3,386 shares during the period. Forum Financial Management LP raised its holdings in Hecla Mining by 24.4% during the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 21,152 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 4,146 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rathbones Group PLC lifted its position in Hecla Mining by 12.1% in the second quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 40,729 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $198,000 after purchasing an additional 4,400 shares during the period. 63.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Hecla Mining

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.