Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Shares Down 3.5% – Here’s What Happened

Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL) shares fell 3.5% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $19.54 and last traded at $19.58. 3,001,384 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 21,946,469 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.30.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Roth Capital set a $8.75 price objective on Hecla Mining and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $15.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Hecla Mining from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 2nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Monday. Finally, HC Wainwright increased their price target on Hecla Mining from $12.50 to $16.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $10.22.

Hecla Mining Trading Down 3.1%

The stock has a market cap of $13.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 63.24 and a beta of 1.36. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $15.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 2.15 and a quick ratio of 1.51.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $409.54 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $315.60 million. Hecla Mining had a net margin of 16.35% and a return on equity of 7.87%. Hecla Mining’s revenue for the quarter was up 67.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.03 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Hecla Mining Company will post 0.21 EPS for the current year.

Hecla Mining Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 24th were issued a $0.0038 dividend. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 24th. Hecla Mining’s payout ratio is 3.23%.

Insider Transactions at Hecla Mining

In other Hecla Mining news, VP David C. Sienko sold 207,553 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.42, for a total value of $4,030,679.26. Following the sale, the vice president owned 906,370 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,601,705.40. The trade was a 18.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Russell Douglas Lawlar sold 18,535 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.02, for a total value of $278,395.70. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 374,460 shares of company stock worth $6,534,655 over the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in shares of Hecla Mining in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 2,390.0% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,490 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 2,390 shares in the last quarter. MAI Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Hecla Mining in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new position in Hecla Mining in the third quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. increased its stake in Hecla Mining by 29.9% during the third quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 4,023 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 926 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 63.01% of the company’s stock.

Hecla Mining Company Profile

Hecla Mining Company, founded in 1891 and headquartered in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, is one of the oldest publicly traded precious metals companies in the United States. Originally established to develop the rich silver deposits of the Coeur d’Alene district, Hecla has evolved into a diversified mining enterprise focused on the exploration, development and production of silver and gold, with by-product credits from lead and zinc.

The company’s principal operations are located in North America and Latin America.