Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) VP Sells $126,047.16 in Stock

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) VP Stuart Maurice Absolom sold 18,926 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.66, for a total value of $126,047.16. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 59,410 shares in the company, valued at $395,670.60. This trade represents a 24.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Hecla Mining Stock Performance

Shares of HL opened at $6.28 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.97 billion, a PE ratio of 125.63 and a beta of 1.44. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $5.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $5.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.55. Hecla Mining has a 1 year low of $4.41 and a 1 year high of $7.68.

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

Hecla Mining Dividend Announcement

The business 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. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on HL. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $5.50 price target (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 dropped their price target on Hecla Mining from $6.60 to $6.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. National Bank Financial raised Hecla Mining to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Hecla Mining from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hecla Mining presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $7.13.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Strs Ohio purchased a new position in shares of Hecla Mining in the first quarter valued at $188,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 24.1% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,959,276 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $10,894,000 after purchasing an additional 380,448 shares in the last quarter. Aristeia Capital L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Hecla Mining in the first quarter valued at $333,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 20.9% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,285,345 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $23,827,000 after purchasing an additional 739,360 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 12.7% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 12,124,216 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $67,411,000 after purchasing an additional 1,366,700 shares in the last quarter. 63.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.