Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the six ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $7.56.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on HL. 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. Roth Mkm reduced their target price 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, StockNews.com raised shares of Hecla Mining from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday.

Hecla Mining Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of HL traded up $0.01 on Friday, reaching $6.63. The company's stock had a trading volume of 9,816,706 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,755,504. Hecla Mining has a twelve month low of $3.33 and a twelve month high of $7.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $6.08 and a 200-day moving average of $5.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.18 billion, a PE ratio of -82.88 and a beta of 2.01.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.01 by $0.01. Hecla Mining had a negative net margin of 5.56% and a negative return on equity of 0.42%. The business had revenue of $245.66 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $208.80 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.03 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Hecla Mining will post 0.07 EPS for the current year.

Hecla Mining Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 26th were paid a $0.0138 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. This is a boost from Hecla Mining's previous quarterly dividend of $0.00. This represents a $0.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. Hecla Mining's dividend payout ratio is currently -62.50%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Kurt Allen sold 108,612 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.77, for a total transaction of $735,303.24. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 173,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,175,949. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in Hecla Mining by 6.8% during 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 acquiring an additional 3,827,580 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Hecla Mining by 2.6% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,420,114 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $285,811,000 after buying an additional 1,506,573 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Hecla Mining by 0.4% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 34,644,620 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $168,027,000 after buying an additional 146,689 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new position in Hecla Mining in the first quarter worth about $42,576,000. Finally, Ninety One UK Ltd raised its holdings in Hecla Mining by 17.0% in the second quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 8,219,231 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $39,863,000 after buying an additional 1,196,515 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.