Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Takes Position in Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 111,235 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $539,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of HL. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in Hecla Mining by 21.5% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 223,508 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,075,000 after buying an additional 39,494 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 22.7% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 77,389 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $372,000 after acquiring an additional 14,295 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Hecla Mining by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,902,891 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $28,393,000 after acquiring an additional 62,702 shares in the last quarter. SCP Investment LP boosted its position in Hecla Mining by 34.7% during the fourth quarter. SCP Investment LP now owns 38,800 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $181,000 after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Hecla Mining by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 34,919,446 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $167,967,000 after purchasing an additional 168,185 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.01% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Hecla Mining news, VP Robert Denis Brown sold 24,792 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.91, for a total transaction of $121,728.72. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 607,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,983,556.59. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Russell Douglas Lawlar sold 11,679 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.91, for a total transaction of $57,343.89. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 393,894 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,934,019.54. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Robert Denis Brown sold 24,792 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.91, for a total transaction of $121,728.72. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 607,649 shares in the company, valued at $2,983,556.59. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 67,105 shares of company stock valued at $329,486. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hecla Mining Stock Up 6.0 %

Shares of HL opened at $6.83 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $4.30 billion, a P/E ratio of -45.50 and a beta of 2.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 1.29. Hecla Mining has a 52 week low of $3.33 and a 52 week high of $6.86. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $5.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.26.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.02 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.01 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $245.66 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $208.80 million. Hecla Mining had a negative return on equity of 0.42% and a negative net margin of 5.56%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.03 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Hecla Mining will post 0.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Hecla Mining Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 26th were issued a dividend of $0.0138 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $0.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. This is an increase from Hecla Mining’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.00. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -33.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Cibc World Mkts raised Hecla Mining to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. CIBC upped their price target on shares of Hecla Mining from $6.75 to $7.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Roth Mkm decreased their price objective on shares of Hecla Mining from $6.25 to $6.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $10.25 target price on shares of Hecla Mining in a report on Thursday, August 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hecla Mining currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $7.13.

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.