Insider Buying: Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) CEO Buys $34,755.30 in Stock

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) CEO Robert Krcmarov bought 6,570 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $5.29 per share, with a total value of $34,755.30. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 331,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,755,518.24. This represents a 2.02 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Hecla Mining Stock Down 7.2 %

Shares of NYSE:HL opened at $5.23 on Monday. 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 business has a 50 day simple moving average of $5.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5.87. Hecla Mining has a 1 year low of $3.40 and a 1 year high of $7.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.30 billion, a PE ratio of 104.52 and a beta of 1.91.

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

Hecla Mining Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.0038 dividend. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio is presently 100.02%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hecla Mining

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HL. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,961 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System grew its stake in Hecla Mining by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 173,616 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $852,000 after purchasing an additional 2,297 shares in the last quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management increased its holdings in Hecla Mining by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 248,727 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,659,000 after purchasing an additional 2,367 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in Hecla Mining by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 25,370 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $125,000 after purchasing an additional 2,457 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 19.2% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 18,075 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $121,000 after buying an additional 2,909 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 63.01% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $11.50 price objective on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com raised Hecla Mining from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 17th. National Bank Financial downgraded Hecla Mining from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. TD Securities dropped their target price on Hecla Mining from $7.00 to $6.50 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Finally, Roth Mkm cut their target price on Hecla Mining from $6.60 to $6.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $8.00.

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.