First Majestic Silver (NYSE:AG) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

Shares of First Majestic Silver Corp. (NYSE:AG) (TSE:FR) gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $6.52, but opened at $6.76. First Majestic Silver shares last traded at $6.67, with a volume of 1,655,648 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. National Bankshares restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of First Majestic Silver in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $11.00 target price on shares of First Majestic Silver in a research report on Friday, February 21st. TD Securities upgraded First Majestic Silver to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Scotiabank restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $6.00 price objective on shares of First Majestic Silver in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of First Majestic Silver from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $8.50.

First Majestic Silver Stock Down 0.9 %

The company has a current ratio of 2.56, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a market capitalization of $3.13 billion, a PE ratio of -18.46 and a beta of 0.97. The business has a fifty day moving average of $6.13 and a 200 day moving average of $6.18.

First Majestic Silver (NYSE:AG) (TSE:FR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The mining company reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.05 by ($0.02). First Majestic Silver had a negative net margin of 18.17% and a negative return on equity of 3.07%. The business had revenue of $172.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $227.77 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that First Majestic Silver Corp. will post 0.54 EPS for the current year.

First Majestic Silver Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $0.0057 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.35%. This is a positive change from First Majestic Silver’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.00. First Majestic Silver’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -5.71%.

Institutional Trading of First Majestic Silver

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AG. Barclays PLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Majestic Silver in the 3rd quarter valued at $2,419,000. Realta Investment Advisors boosted its position in shares of First Majestic Silver by 16.8% during the 4th quarter. Realta Investment Advisors now owns 497,726 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $2,882,000 after acquiring an additional 71,456 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of First Majestic Silver by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 565,982 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $3,109,000 after acquiring an additional 18,219 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of First Majestic Silver by 30.3% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 21,500 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $118,000 after acquiring an additional 5,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in First Majestic Silver during the fourth quarter worth approximately $161,000. 27.16% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About First Majestic Silver

First Majestic Silver Corp. engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of mineral properties with a focus on silver and gold production in North America. Its projects include the San Dimas mine covering an area of approximately 71,867 hectares located in Durango State, Mexico; the Santa Elena that covers an area of approximately 102,244 hectares located in Sonora State, México; and the La Encantada covering an area of approximately 4,076 hectares located in Coahuila State, México.