Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, three have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $7.94.

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. TD Securities cut their price target on Hecla Mining from $8.50 to $8.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $10.25 target price on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. StockNews.com downgraded Hecla Mining from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Roth Mkm reduced 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, National Bank Financial cut shares of Hecla Mining from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th.

Hecla Mining Stock Up 0.5 %

HL stock opened at $5.52 on Monday. Hecla Mining has a fifty-two week low of $3.33 and a fifty-two week high of $7.68. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $6.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $5.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -138.00 and a beta of 2.00.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $245.09 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $232.03 million. Hecla Mining had a negative net margin of 2.27% and a positive return on equity of 0.75%. The company’s revenue was up 34.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.01) EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Hecla Mining will post 0.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hecla Mining Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.0138 dividend. This represents a $0.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio is currently -125.00%.

Insider Transactions at Hecla Mining

In other news, VP Kurt Allen sold 108,612 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.77, for a total value of $735,303.24. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 173,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,175,949. This represents a 38.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hecla Mining

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 2,757.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 460,610 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,017,000 after purchasing an additional 444,490 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Hecla Mining in the 3rd quarter valued at $245,000. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in Hecla Mining in the 3rd quarter valued at $371,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Hecla Mining by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,865,241 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $92,499,000 after buying an additional 711,676 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 317.4% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 909,811 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,069,000 after acquiring an additional 691,862 shares during the period. 63.01% of the stock is 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.