Hecla Mining Company $HL Stock Sold by Engineers Gate Manager LP

Key Points

• Engineers Gate Manager LP cut its Hecla Mining stake by 94.9% during the second quarter, selling 310,882 shares and retaining 16,800 shares valued at approximately $259,000.
• Analysts remain cautious: Hecla has an average “Hold” rating and a consensus price target of $23.34, although RBC and Scotiabank recently lowered their targets.
• Hecla reported quarterly earnings of $0.17 per share, slightly below expectations, while revenue rose 9.8% year over year to $333.85 million. The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.0037 per share.

Engineers Gate Manager LP reduced its position in Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL - Free Report) by 94.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,800 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 310,882 shares during the quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP's holdings in Hecla Mining were worth $259,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HL. Sittner & Nelson LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Rothschild Investment LLC raised its position in Hecla Mining by 93.5% during the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 1,616 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 781 shares during the last quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. acquired a new stake in Hecla Mining during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. EFG International AG purchased a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont purchased a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining in the 2nd quarter valued at $39,000. 63.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on HL. Weiss Ratings upgraded Hecla Mining from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on Hecla Mining from $24.00 to $20.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Scotiabank reduced their price target on Hecla Mining from $25.00 to $21.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Zacks Research upgraded Hecla Mining to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Hecla Mining in a report on Thursday, August 20th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $22.00 price target for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $23.34.

Hecla Mining Price Performance

NYSE:HL opened at $18.23 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.20 and a beta of 1.38. The company's 50-day moving average is $18.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.75. Hecla Mining Company has a 1-year low of $11.48 and a 1-year high of $34.17.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The basic materials company reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $333.85 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $368.75 million. Hecla Mining had a return on equity of 18.91% and a net margin of 20.84%.The company's revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.09 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Hecla Mining Company will post 0.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hecla Mining Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 26th were given a $0.0037 dividend. This represents a $0.01 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 26th. Hecla Mining's payout ratio is currently 2.04%.

About Hecla Mining

Hecla Mining Company NYSE: HL is a precious and base metals mining company focused primarily on the exploration, development, and production of silver, gold, lead, and zinc. The company sells concentrates and refined metals produced from its mining operations and also maintains a portfolio of exploration and development properties.

Founded in 1891, Hecla is one of the oldest U.S.-based mining companies. Its operating portfolio has included the Greens Creek silver, gold, lead, and zinc mine near Juneau, Alaska; the Lucky Friday silver, lead, and zinc mine in Idaho; the Keno Hill silver district in Yukon, Canada; and the Casa Berardi gold mine in Quebec, Canada.

Through these operations and related exploration activities, Hecla serves the North American metals market, with production and mineral assets located in the United States and Canada.

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