Graham Capital Management L.P. Increases Stock Position in Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL)

Graham Capital Management L.P. boosted its stake in Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) by 26.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 180,612 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 38,331 shares during the quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P.’s holdings in Hecla Mining were worth $887,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,220,645 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,453,000 after buying an additional 502,094 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining in the 4th quarter worth about $1,640,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 20.3% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,189,473 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $20,570,000 after buying an additional 707,712 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 61,393,040 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $301,440,000 after buying an additional 774,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 202.4% in the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 76,151 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $374,000 after buying an additional 50,969 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on HL. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $5.50 target price (down from $7.50) on shares of Hecla Mining in a report on Monday, May 5th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $11.50 price target on shares of Hecla Mining in a report on Friday, February 14th. Roth Mkm cut their price target on shares of Hecla Mining from $6.60 to $6.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. TD Securities cut their price target on shares of Hecla Mining from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Hecla Mining to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $7.20.

Insider Transactions at Hecla Mining

In other Hecla Mining news, CEO Robert Krcmarov purchased 6,570 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $5.29 per share, with a total value of $34,755.30. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 331,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,755,518.24. This trade represents a 2.02% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Catherine J. Boggs bought 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $4.99 per share, with a total value of $99,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 348,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,737,363.31. The trade was a 6.09% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 57,915 shares of company stock valued at $300,000. Company insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Hecla Mining Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HL opened at $4.95 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 99.02 and a beta of 1.57. Hecla Mining has a 12 month low of $4.41 and a 12 month high of $7.68. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $5.49 and its 200 day moving average is $5.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $261.34 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $238.50 million. Hecla Mining had a return on equity of 3.10% and a net margin of 3.85%. Hecla Mining’s revenue was up 37.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.01) earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Hecla Mining will post 0.21 EPS for the current year.

Hecla Mining Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a $0.0038 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.30%. Hecla Mining’s payout ratio is presently 9.09%.

Hecla Mining Company Profile

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.