Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Shares Purchased by Byrne Asset Management LLC

Byrne Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) by 131.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 13,208 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,508 shares during the period. Byrne Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Hecla Mining were worth $73,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,220,645 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,453,000 after purchasing an additional 502,094 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Hecla Mining in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,640,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 20.3% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,189,473 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $20,570,000 after purchasing an additional 707,712 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 61,393,040 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $301,440,000 after purchasing an additional 774,000 shares during the period. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in Hecla Mining by 202.4% during the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 76,151 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $374,000 after acquiring an additional 50,969 shares during the period. 63.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hecla Mining Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of Hecla Mining stock opened at $6.02 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 120.32 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.55. Hecla Mining has a 52-week low of $4.41 and a 52-week high of $7.68. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $5.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $5.46.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.05 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $261.34 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $238.50 million. Hecla Mining had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 3.10%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 37.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.01) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Hecla Mining will post 0.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hecla Mining Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.0038 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.25%. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio is 9.09%.

Insider Activity at Hecla Mining

In related news, Director Catherine J. Boggs acquired 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $4.99 per share, with a total value of $99,800.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 348,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,737,363.31. The trade was a 6.09% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Stuart Maurice Absolom sold 18,926 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.66, for a total value of $126,047.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 59,410 shares in the company, valued at $395,670.60. The trade was a 24.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.62% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on HL. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and set a $5.50 price objective (down from $7.50) on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Monday, May 5th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $11.50 price objective on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Roth Mkm decreased their price objective on Hecla Mining from $6.60 to $6.50 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. TD Securities decreased their price objective on Hecla Mining from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded Hecla Mining to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hecla Mining currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $7.13.

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.