Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $6.68.

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Roth Mkm upped their price objective on Hecla Mining from $4.60 to $6.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. National Bank Financial reissued an “outperform market weight” rating on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Hecla Mining to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th.

Hecla Mining Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of HL opened at $5.31 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.28 billion, a P/E ratio of -35.40 and a beta of 2.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.65. Hecla Mining has a 52 week low of $3.33 and a 52 week high of $6.41. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $4.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $4.35.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The basic materials company reported ($0.04) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $160.69 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $151.51 million. Hecla Mining had a negative return on equity of 0.27% and a negative net margin of 11.69%. The company’s revenue was down 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.02 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Hecla Mining will post 0.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Hecla Mining Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 12th were paid a $0.006 dividend. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 11th. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -20.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 57,567,847 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $225,090,000 after buying an additional 487,299 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 53.8% in the 3rd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 566,574 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,215,000 after buying an additional 198,254 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,928,871 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $23,182,000 after buying an additional 69,308 shares in the last quarter. TIAA Trust National Association acquired a new position in Hecla Mining during the 4th quarter worth approximately $156,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC increased its position in Hecla Mining by 1,172.3% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 17,812 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 16,412 shares in the last quarter. 63.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.