Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Shares Gap Up to $4.90

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) shares gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $4.90, but opened at $5.05. Hecla Mining shares last traded at $5.19, with a volume of 1,281,154 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on HL. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Hecla Mining to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $10.25 price target on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Cibc World Mkts raised Hecla Mining to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. National Bank Financial reaffirmed an “outperform market weight” rating on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Finally, CIBC raised their target price on Hecla Mining from $6.75 to $7.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $6.89.

Hecla Mining Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $3.24 billion, a PE ratio of -34.47 and a beta of 2.01. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $5.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $4.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The basic materials company reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by $0.03. The business had revenue of $189.53 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $190.31 million. Hecla Mining had a negative return on equity of 0.28% and a negative net margin of 12.22%. On average, equities analysts predict that Hecla Mining will post 0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hecla Mining Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Friday, May 24th were given a dividend of $0.006 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a $0.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.46%. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -20.00%.

Insider Activity at Hecla Mining

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HL. Tactive Advisors LLC raised its position in Hecla Mining by 61.2% in the first quarter. Tactive Advisors LLC now owns 107,276 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $516,000 after acquiring an additional 40,730 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC grew its position in Hecla Mining by 48.9% in the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 15,532 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 5,104 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank increased its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 159,629.7% in the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 424,881 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,044,000 after buying an additional 424,615 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining during the 1st quarter valued at $42,576,000. Finally, B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 2.9% during the first quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,155,943 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,560,000 after purchasing an additional 32,478 shares during the last quarter. 63.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.