Insider Selling: Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) VP Sells 9,195 Shares of Stock

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) VP Kurt Allen sold 9,195 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.18, for a total value of $47,630.10. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 104,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $541,372.16. This represents a 8.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Hecla Mining Trading Down 2.8 %

Shares of NYSE HL opened at $5.09 on Friday. Hecla Mining has a 1-year low of $3.41 and a 1-year high of $7.68. The business’s 50 day moving average is $5.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 101.72 and a beta of 1.91. 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 (NYSE:HL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The basic materials company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.05 by ($0.01). Hecla Mining had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 3.10%. The business had revenue of $249.66 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $229.21 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Hecla Mining will post 0.21 EPS for the current year.

Hecla Mining Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.0038 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.29%. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on HL shares. National Bank Financial cut Hecla Mining from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. TD Securities reduced their target price on Hecla Mining from $7.00 to $6.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 21st. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $11.50 target price on shares of Hecla Mining in a report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com raised Hecla Mining from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 17th. Finally, Roth Mkm reduced their target price on Hecla Mining from $6.60 to $6.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $8.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Hecla Mining during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 771.8% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,013 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 4,438 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 30.7% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,351 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,961 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.01% of the company’s stock.

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.