Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Shares Gap Up - Still a Buy?

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $5.88, but opened at $6.05. Hecla Mining shares last traded at $5.98, with a volume of 1,577,650 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Roth Mkm dropped their price objective on shares of Hecla Mining from $6.60 to $6.50 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. 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 report on Tuesday, March 11th. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $11.50 price target on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Hecla Mining from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hecla Mining has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $7.75.

Hecla Mining Trading Down 1.6 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $5.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $5.84. The company has a market capitalization of $3.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 115.12 and a beta of 1.94.

Remove Ads

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.01). The business 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%. On average, analysts expect that Hecla Mining will post 0.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hecla Mining Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.0038 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.26%. Hecla Mining's dividend payout ratio is currently 20.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hecla Mining news, CAO Michael L. Clary sold 32,387 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.18, for a total transaction of $167,764.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 246,440 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,276,559.20. This represents a 11.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Kurt Allen sold 9,195 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 $541,372.16. This trade represents a 8.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 57,915 shares of company stock valued at $300,000. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hecla Mining

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HL. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position 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 buying an additional 4,438 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Hecla Mining during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Hecla Mining by 30.7% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,351 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,961 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.01% of the company's stock.

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.