138,357 Shares in Hecla Mining Company $HL Purchased by Abbington Investment Group

Abbington Investment Group acquired a new stake in Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 138,357 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,674,000. Hecla Mining comprises 1.4% of Abbington Investment Group’s holdings, making the stock its 26th largest position.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of HL. Lesa Sroufe & Co lifted its holdings in Hecla Mining by 0.8% during the third quarter. Lesa Sroufe & Co now owns 472,476 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,717,000 after acquiring an additional 3,544 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining during the 3rd quarter valued at $3,677,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 127.4% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 188,468 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,280,000 after purchasing an additional 105,606 shares during the period. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hecla Mining in the 3rd quarter worth about $195,000. Finally, U S Global Investors Inc. grew its position in Hecla Mining by 9.1% during the third quarter. U S Global Investors Inc. now owns 600,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $7,260,000 after buying an additional 50,000 shares during the period. 63.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hecla Mining Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of NYSE HL opened at $21.02 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company has a market cap of $14.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 67.79 and a beta of 1.28. Hecla Mining Company has a 52 week low of $4.46 and a 52 week high of $22.28. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $17.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.81.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.01. The firm 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%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 67.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.03 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Hecla Mining Company will post 0.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hecla Mining Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 8th. Investors of record on Monday, November 24th were paid a dividend of $0.0038 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 24th. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.1%. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 3.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Scotiabank began 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 objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Monday, December 29th. HC Wainwright increased their price objective on Hecla Mining from $12.50 to $16.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Wall Street Zen raised Hecla Mining from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 2nd. Finally, CIBC increased their price target on Hecla Mining from $15.00 to $16.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $10.22.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Kurt Allen sold 52,219 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.91, for a total transaction of $1,144,118.29. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 216,641 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,746,604.31. This trade represents a 19.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP David C. Sienko sold 207,553 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.42, for a total transaction of $4,030,679.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 906,370 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,601,705.40. This trade represents a 18.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 426,679 shares of company stock worth $7,678,773 over the last ninety days. 0.62% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Hecla Mining

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.