Dark Forest Capital Management LP Boosts Stake in Hecla Mining Company $HL

Key Points

• Dark Forest Capital Management LP increased its stake in Hecla Mining Company by 146.8% during the first quarter, owning a total of 647,748 shares valued at approximately $3.6 million.
• Hecla Mining's stock recently saw a 4.7% increase, opening at $8.91, and has shown strong revenue growth, reporting a 23.8% increase compared to the same quarter last year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.0038 per share, with a dividend yield of 0.2%, scheduled for payment on September 4th.

Dark Forest Capital Management LP raised its holdings in Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL - Free Report) by 146.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 647,748 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 385,283 shares during the period. Dark Forest Capital Management LP owned about 0.10% of Hecla Mining worth $3,601,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of HL. EP Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Hecla Mining by 43.3% in the 1st quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 42,518 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $236,000 after purchasing an additional 12,851 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its stake in Hecla Mining by 10.9% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 21,657 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $120,000 after buying an additional 2,135 shares during the period. Graham Capital Management L.P. increased its holdings in Hecla Mining by 106.2% in the 1st quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. now owns 372,465 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,071,000 after purchasing an additional 191,853 shares during the last quarter. DRW Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining in the first quarter valued at $54,000. Finally, OLD Mission Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Hecla Mining during the first quarter worth about $83,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.01% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on HL shares. CIBC upped their price target on Hecla Mining from $7.50 to $8.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Hecla Mining from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. National Bank Financial raised shares of Hecla Mining to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 12th. HC Wainwright boosted their target price on Hecla Mining from $11.50 to $12.50 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, National Bankshares set a $7.00 price target on shares of Hecla Mining in a report on Friday, June 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $7.36.

Hecla Mining Stock Up 4.7%

Shares of Hecla Mining stock opened at $8.91 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.99. Hecla Mining Company has a 1-year low of $4.46 and a 1-year high of $8.94. The business has a 50-day moving average of $6.71 and a 200-day moving average of $5.92. The company has a market capitalization of $5.97 billion, a PE ratio of 55.72 and a beta of 1.29.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.03. Hecla Mining had a net margin of 9.55% and a return on equity of 5.51%. The business had revenue of $304.03 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $248.93 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.02 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 23.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Hecla Mining Company will post 0.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hecla Mining Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 22nd will be given a $0.0038 dividend. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 22nd. Hecla Mining's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 6.25%.

Insider Transactions at Hecla Mining

In related news, VP Stuart Maurice Absolom sold 18,926 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.66, for a total transaction of $126,047.16. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 59,410 shares in the company, valued at approximately $395,670.60. This trade represents a 24.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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