Franklin Resources Inc. Has $3.25 Million Stake in Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Free Report) by 43.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 661,723 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 201,113 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.11% of Hecla Mining worth $3,249,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Hecla Mining during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Hecla Mining by 771.8% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,013 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 4,438 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Hecla Mining during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Hecla Mining by 30.7% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,351 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 1,961 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining in the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.01% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

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Insider Activity at Hecla Mining

In other news, VP Kurt Allen sold 9,195 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.18, for a total value of $47,630.10. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 104,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $541,372.16. This represents a 8.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Russell Douglas Lawlar sold 16,333 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.18, for a total value of $84,604.94. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 297,983 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,543,551.94. This trade represents a 5.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 57,915 shares of company stock valued at $300,000 over the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hecla Mining Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HL traded up $0.03 on Tuesday, hitting $5.89. 15,922,176 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,014,395. The company's 50 day moving average price is $5.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $5.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 117.72 and a beta of 1.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.08. Hecla Mining has a one year low of $4.41 and a one year high of $7.68.

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

Hecla Mining Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $0.0038 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.25%. Hecla Mining's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.00%.

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.