Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Reaches New 1-Year High at $7.09

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $7.09 and last traded at $7.08, with a volume of 6965849 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.59.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Roth Mkm reduced their target price on Hecla Mining from $6.25 to $6.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $10.25 price objective on shares of Hecla Mining in a report on Thursday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hecla Mining has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $7.56.

Hecla Mining Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $5.83 and a 200-day moving average of $5.40. The stock has a market cap of $4.44 billion, a PE ratio of -47.27 and a beta of 2.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 0.58.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.01 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $245.66 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $208.80 million. Hecla Mining had a negative net margin of 5.56% and a negative return on equity of 0.42%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.03 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Hecla Mining will post 0.04 EPS 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 given a dividend of $0.0138 per share. This is an increase from Hecla Mining’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.00. This represents a $0.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio is currently -33.33%.

Insider Activity at Hecla Mining

In related news, VP Kurt Allen sold 108,612 shares of the 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 173,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,175,949. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HL. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Hecla Mining in the first quarter worth $42,576,000. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Hecla Mining during the 2nd quarter valued at about $19,714,000. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in Hecla Mining by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 60,513,592 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $291,070,000 after buying an additional 3,827,580 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Hecla Mining in the 4th quarter worth about $13,761,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 2.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,420,114 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $285,811,000 after acquiring an additional 1,506,573 shares during the period. 63.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.