Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $5.87, but opened at $6.05. Hecla Mining shares last traded at $6.01, with a volume of 2,524,836 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on HL shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Hecla Mining from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 17th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $11.50 price target on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Roth Mkm cut their price objective 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. National Bank Financial upgraded Hecla Mining to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, TD Securities cut shares of Hecla Mining from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $6.50 to $5.50 in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $7.75.

Hecla Mining Stock Performance

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 $3.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 118.52 and a beta of 1.94. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $5.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $5.84.

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

Hecla Mining Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $0.0038 per share. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.25%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.00%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Robert Krcmarov acquired 6,570 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was bought at an average price 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 in the company, valued at $1,755,518.24. The trade was a 2.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Russell Douglas Lawlar sold 16,333 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.18, for a total value of $84,604.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 297,983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,543,551.94. This represents a 5.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 57,915 shares of company stock valued at $300,000 over the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HL. Tidal Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 100.5% in the fourth quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 15,885,647 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $77,999,000 after buying an additional 7,960,826 shares during the period. Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Hecla Mining in the fourth quarter worth approximately $18,441,000. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in Hecla Mining by 182.4% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 5,006,115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $24,580,000 after acquiring an additional 3,233,116 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new position in shares of Hecla Mining in the third quarter valued at about $14,623,000. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Hecla Mining by 1,331.9% in the 4th quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,997,790 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $9,809,000 after purchasing an additional 1,858,271 shares during the period. 63.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.