Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $6.89.

HL has been the subject of several research reports. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $10.25 price objective on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. CIBC lifted their price objective on shares of Hecla Mining from $6.75 to $7.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. National Bank Financial reiterated an “outperform market weight” rating on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Cibc World Mkts upgraded shares of Hecla Mining to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Finally, Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on shares of Hecla Mining from $4.60 to $6.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th.

Hecla Mining Trading Up 1.0 %

NYSE:HL opened at $5.27 on Friday. Hecla Mining has a 52 week low of $3.33 and a 52 week high of $6.29. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $5.34 and a 200 day moving average of $4.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -35.13 and a beta of 2.01.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The basic materials company reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by $0.03. Hecla Mining had a negative net margin of 12.22% and a negative return on equity of 0.28%. The company had revenue of $189.53 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $190.31 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hecla Mining will post 0.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hecla Mining Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 24th were issued a $0.006 dividend. 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 payout ratio is -20.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hecla Mining

In other Hecla Mining news, VP Robert Denis Brown sold 24,792 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.91, for a total value of $121,728.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 607,649 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,983,556.59. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, CFO Russell Douglas Lawlar sold 11,679 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.91, for a total value 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Robert Denis Brown sold 24,792 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 25th. The shares were 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 owns 607,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,983,556.59. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 67,105 shares of company stock valued at $329,486. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hecla Mining

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Byrne Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Hecla Mining during the first quarter worth about $34,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in Hecla Mining by 27.7% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,447 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 2,916 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Hecla Mining during the fourth quarter worth about $72,000. Cetera Advisors LLC boosted its position in Hecla Mining by 48.9% during the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 15,532 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 5,104 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Hecla Mining during the fourth quarter worth about $76,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.01% of the company’s stock.

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.