Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Lowered to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Hecla Mining from a buy to a hold rating, adding to a mixed analyst picture that currently leans cautious. The stock’s consensus rating remains Hold, with a consensus target price of $22.25.
• Hecla Mining reported Q1 earnings of $0.24 per share, below the $0.27 consensus estimate, though revenue came in slightly above expectations at $411.43 million. Revenue was up 57.4% year over year.
• The stock recently opened at $18.61, below both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, while the company maintains a strong balance sheet with a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. Institutional investors own about 63.01% of the shares.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on HL. Canaccord Genuity Group raised Hecla Mining from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $24.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce increased their target price on Hecla Mining from $27.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. 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. HC Wainwright dropped their target price on Hecla Mining from $36.50 to $26.75 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Hecla Mining from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hecla Mining has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $22.25.

Hecla Mining Stock Performance

Shares of HL opened at $18.61 on Friday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $19.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $19.40. Hecla Mining has a 12-month low of $4.68 and a 12-month high of $34.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.48 billion, a PE ratio of 45.40 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 4.94 and a quick ratio of 2.22.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.27 by ($0.03). Hecla Mining had a return on equity of 16.89% and a net margin of 17.41%.The firm had revenue of $411.43 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $407.63 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.04 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 57.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Hecla Mining will post 0.67 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hecla Mining during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 74.3% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,480 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 631 shares during the period. Sittner & Nelson LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hecla Mining during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 2,390.0% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,490 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 2,390 shares during the period. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 93.5% during the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 1,616 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 781 shares during the period. 63.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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