Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Hits New 52-Week High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Hecla Mining shares reached a new 52-week high of $13.36, reflecting significant trading activity with over 22 million shares exchanged.
• Analysts have provided mixed ratings, with two upgrades to "buy", while the consensus rating remains a "hold" with a target price of $7.75.
• The company reported a revenue increase of 23.8% year-over-year, achieving $304.03 million, and beat earnings expectations by reporting $0.08 EPS.

Shares of Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $13.36 and last traded at $13.34, with a volume of 22717271 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $11.95.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HL has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Hecla Mining from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. CIBC upped their price target on shares of Hecla Mining from $7.50 to $8.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. HC Wainwright upped their price target on shares of Hecla Mining from $11.50 to $12.50 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Hecla Mining from $6.00 to $6.50 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $7.75.

Hecla Mining Stock Up 1.0%

The business's 50 day moving average is $9.40 and its 200-day moving average is $6.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.99 and a current ratio of 2.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 84.21 and a beta of 1.31.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $248.93 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.02 EPS. Hecla Mining's revenue was up 23.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Hecla Mining Company will post 0.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hecla Mining Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Friday, August 22nd were paid a $0.0038 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $0.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.1%. Hecla Mining's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.25%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hecla Mining news, VP Stuart Maurice Absolom sold 14,472 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.29, for a total value of $163,388.88. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 73,200 shares of the company's stock, valued at $826,428. This represents a 16.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Comerica Bank bought a new position in Hecla Mining during the 1st quarter valued at about $2,964,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 146.8% during the 1st quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 647,748 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $3,601,000 after buying an additional 385,283 shares during the period. Martingale Asset Management L P acquired a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining during the 1st quarter worth approximately $187,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 62,830,935 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $349,340,000 after buying an additional 1,437,895 shares during the period. Finally, Pale Fire Capital SE acquired a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining during the 1st quarter worth approximately $41,360,000. 63.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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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