Nuveen LLC Invests $18.41 Million in Hecla Mining Company $HL

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has acquired a new stake in Hecla Mining Company, purchasing 3,311,232 shares valued at approximately $18.4 million, constituting 0.52% of the company's total stock.
• Insider transactions revealed that VP Stuart Maurice Absolom sold 18,926 shares for $126,047, indicating a 24.16% reduction in his holdings.
• Wall Street analysts have varied ratings on Hecla Mining, with two analysts issuing a "Buy" rating and a consensus rating of "Hold," along with an average price target of $7.36.

Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 3,311,232 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $18,410,000. Nuveen LLC owned 0.52% of Hecla Mining at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of HL. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Hecla Mining by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,736,673 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $13,437,000 after purchasing an additional 147,730 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Hecla Mining during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,640,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 811.4% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 18,511 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 16,480 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Hecla Mining by 11.8% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,016,903 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $4,992,000 after buying an additional 107,092 shares during the period. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP boosted its holdings in Hecla Mining by 148.8% in the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 24,940 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $122,000 after buying an additional 14,915 shares during the period. 63.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Stuart Maurice Absolom sold 18,926 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.66, for a total transaction of $126,047.16. Following the sale, the vice president owned 59,410 shares in the company, valued at approximately $395,670.60. This represents a 24.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.62% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on HL shares. HC Wainwright raised their price target on Hecla Mining from $11.50 to $12.50 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Roth Capital reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. National Bank Financial raised Hecla Mining to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, June 12th. TD Securities dropped their price target on Hecla Mining from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Hecla Mining from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Two 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 stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $7.36.

Hecla Mining Price Performance

Shares of Hecla Mining stock traded up $0.1890 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $7.8790. The company's stock had a trading volume of 19,192,080 shares, compared to its average volume of 21,819,428. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $6.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $5.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.99. The stock has a market cap of $5.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.25 and a beta of 1.27. Hecla Mining Company has a one year low of $4.46 and a one year high of $8.04.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.08 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.05 by $0.03. Hecla Mining had a return on equity of 5.51% and a net margin of 9.55%.The company had revenue of $304.03 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $248.93 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.02 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 23.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Hecla Mining Company will post 0.21 EPS for the current year.

Hecla Mining Dividend Announcement

The business 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 dividend of $0.0038 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Hecla Mining's payout ratio is currently 6.25%.

Hecla Mining Company Profile

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.