Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Shares Down 1.3% – Here’s Why

Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL) traded down 1.3% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $23.17 and last traded at $24.5980. 24,111,577 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 11% from the average session volume of 27,096,561 shares. The stock had previously closed at $24.91.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on HL shares. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Hecla Mining from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $26.50 price target on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. HC Wainwright boosted their price objective on shares of Hecla Mining from $16.50 to $36.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Scotiabank raised their target price on Hecla Mining from $15.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Hecla Mining from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $21.63.

Hecla Mining Stock Down 1.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 2.22 and a current ratio of 2.72. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $23.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $16.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.20 and a beta of 1.22.

Hecla Mining Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be given a $0.0038 dividend. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 9th. Hecla Mining’s payout ratio is presently 2.04%.

Insider Activity

In other Hecla Mining news, VP Kurt Allen sold 52,219 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.91, for a total value of $1,144,118.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 216,641 shares in the company, valued at $4,746,604.31. This represents a 19.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP David C. Sienko sold 207,553 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.42, for a total transaction of $4,030,679.26. Following the sale, the vice president owned 906,370 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,601,705.40. The trade was a 18.63% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in Hecla Mining by 32.4% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 49,881,495 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $603,566,000 after purchasing an additional 12,197,740 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 13.4% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 71,349,059 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $863,324,000 after purchasing an additional 8,452,401 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 38.0% in the third quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 23,524,912 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $284,651,000 after purchasing an additional 6,472,566 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 86.7% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 12,715,100 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $244,003,000 after buying an additional 5,906,313 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in Hecla Mining during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $88,417,000. 63.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hecla Mining Company Profile

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.