Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 5,685,267 Shares of Hecla Mining Company $HL

Key Points

• Vanguard Group sold 5,685,267 shares of Hecla Mining (an 8.0% reduction), leaving it with 65,663,792 shares — about a 9.80% stake valued at roughly $1.26 billion.
• Analysts have recently raised several price targets but the consensus rating remains "Hold" with a consensus price target of $21.31 (2 Buys, 7 Holds, 1 Sell).
• Hecla shares opened at $18.03 with a market cap of $12.09 billion and a P/E of 36.8, and the company pays a tiny quarterly dividend of $0.0038 (annualized $0.02, ~0.1% yield).

Vanguard Group Inc. decreased its position in shares of Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL - Free Report) by 8.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 65,663,792 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 5,685,267 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 9.80% of Hecla Mining worth $1,260,088,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of HL. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System purchased a new stake in Hecla Mining in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,150,000. Berman McAleer LLC bought a new position in Hecla Mining during the third quarter worth about $593,000. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky purchased a new position in shares of Hecla Mining in the third quarter worth about $1,785,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue purchased a new position in shares of Hecla Mining in the third quarter worth about $4,345,000. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position 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 valued at $284,651,000 after purchasing an additional 6,472,566 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.01% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on HL shares. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce raised their price objective on shares of Hecla Mining from $27.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. HC Wainwright boosted their target price on shares of Hecla Mining from $16.50 to $36.50 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Hecla Mining from $16.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Wall Street Zen cut Hecla Mining from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, March 29th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Hecla Mining from $15.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Hecla Mining currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $21.31.

Hecla Mining Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:HL opened at $18.03 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $19.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.25. The company has a market cap of $12.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.80 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 2.72 and a quick ratio of 2.22. Hecla Mining Company has a one year low of $4.51 and a one year high of $34.17.

Hecla Mining Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Investors of record on Monday, March 9th were given a dividend of $0.0038 per share. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 9th. Hecla Mining's payout ratio is presently 2.04%.

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.

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