Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Rating Lowered to Hold at TD Securities

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) was downgraded by TD Securities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have a $5.50 price target on the basic materials company’s stock, down from their prior price target of $6.50. TD Securities’ price target would indicate a potential downside of 1.35% from the company’s current price.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Roth Mkm lowered their target price 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. StockNews.com upgraded Hecla Mining from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 17th. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $11.50 price objective on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hecla Mining presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $7.75.

Hecla Mining Stock Performance

Shares of Hecla Mining stock opened at $5.58 on Tuesday. Hecla Mining has a 12 month low of $4.04 and a 12 month high of $7.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The company has a market capitalization of $3.52 billion, a PE ratio of 111.52 and a beta of 1.94. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $5.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.84.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Michael L. Clary sold 32,387 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 246,440 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,276,559.20. The trade was a 11.62 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 transaction 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 57,915 shares of company stock valued at $300,000 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hecla Mining

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in HL. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Hecla Mining during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 771.8% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,013 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 4,438 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Hecla Mining in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 30.7% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,351 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,961 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.01% of the company’s stock.

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.