Cibc World Markets Corp Buys Shares of 54,980 Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL)

Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new position in shares of Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 54,980 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $270,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Hecla Mining by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 1,892,228 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $9,291,000 after buying an additional 187,400 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 74.7% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC now owns 137,150 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $673,000 after acquiring an additional 58,650 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its stake in Hecla Mining by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 1,176,662 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,777,000 after purchasing an additional 15,200 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in Hecla Mining by 14.6% in the fourth quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 983,117 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,827,000 after purchasing an additional 125,026 shares during the period. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in Hecla Mining by 421.0% during the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 140,619 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $690,000 after purchasing an additional 113,631 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 63.01% of the company’s stock.

Hecla Mining Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE:HL opened at $5.84 on Wednesday. Hecla Mining has a 1 year low of $4.23 and a 1 year high of $7.68. The business has a fifty day moving average of $5.59 and a 200-day moving average of $5.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.08. The stock has a market cap of $3.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 116.82 and a beta of 1.94.

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

Hecla Mining Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $0.0038 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.26%. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on HL. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $11.50 price target on shares of Hecla Mining in a report on Friday, February 14th. National Bank Financial raised Hecla Mining to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Roth Mkm cut their price target on Hecla Mining from $6.60 to $6.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. TD Securities downgraded Hecla Mining from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $6.50 to $5.50 in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Hecla Mining from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 17th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $7.75.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hecla Mining

In related news, CAO Michael L. Clary sold 32,387 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.18, for a total transaction of $167,764.66. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 246,440 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,276,559.20. This trade represents a 11.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert Krcmarov purchased 6,570 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $5.29 per share, for a total transaction of $34,755.30. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly 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 disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 57,915 shares of company stock valued at $300,000. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hecla Mining 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.