Sprott Inc. Has $11.85 Million Position in Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL)

Sprott Inc. lessened its stake in Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) by 14.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,413,202 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 408,181 shares during the period. Sprott Inc. owned about 0.38% of Hecla Mining worth $11,849,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in Hecla Mining by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 54,680,051 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $391,510,000 after acquiring an additional 2,238,559 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 5.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,865,241 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $92,499,000 after purchasing an additional 711,676 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 7.3% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,718,551 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $44,813,000 after purchasing an additional 456,107 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in Hecla Mining by 51.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,435,909 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $36,258,000 after purchasing an additional 1,842,991 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Hecla Mining by 43.8% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,481,761 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $23,223,000 after buying an additional 1,059,929 shares in the last quarter. 63.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hecla Mining Price Performance

NYSE:HL opened at $5.22 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The firm has a market cap of $3.29 billion, a PE ratio of 104.32 and a beta of 1.91. Hecla Mining has a 12 month low of $3.41 and a 12 month high of $7.68. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $5.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $5.88.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last announced its earnings results 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). The business had revenue of $249.66 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $229.21 million. Hecla Mining had a return on equity of 3.10% and a net margin of 3.85%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Hecla Mining will post 0.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hecla Mining Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.0038 per share. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.29%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Hecla Mining’s payout ratio is presently 20.00%.

Insider Transactions at Hecla Mining

In related news, CEO Robert Krcmarov bought 6,570 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $5.29 per share, for a total transaction of $34,755.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 331,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,755,518.24. This trade represents a 2.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on HL shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Hecla Mining from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 17th. National Bank Financial cut shares of Hecla Mining from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. TD Securities cut their price target on shares of Hecla Mining from $7.00 to $6.50 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Roth Mkm decreased their price objective on Hecla Mining from $6.60 to $6.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $11.50 target price on shares of Hecla Mining in a report on Friday, February 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hecla Mining currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $8.00.

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.