HC Wainwright Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Stock

Key Points

• Hecla Mining's price target was raised from $11.50 to $12.50 by HC Wainwright, indicating a potential upside of 103.68% from the current price.
• Despite the raised target, other analysts have varied opinions, with consensus ratings showing a mix of "hold" and "buy," and a consensus price target of $7.36.
• Hecla Mining reported $0.08 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, as quarterly revenue reached $304.03 million, up 23.8% year-over-year.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) had its price target increased by analysts at HC Wainwright from $11.50 to $12.50 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the basic materials company's stock. HC Wainwright's target price suggests a potential upside of 64.69% from the stock's current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. TD Securities lowered their price objective on shares of Hecla Mining from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 5th. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Hecla Mining to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 12th. Roth Capital restated a "neutral" rating and set a $6.00 target price on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. BMO Capital Markets restated a "market perform" rating and set a $5.50 target price (down from $7.50) on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, National Bankshares set a $7.00 target price on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $7.36.

Hecla Mining Stock Performance

Shares of HL traded up $0.37 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $7.59. 32,374,537 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 21,935,930. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $6.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $5.66. Hecla Mining has a 52-week low of $4.46 and a 52-week high of $7.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.09 billion, a PE ratio of 47.44 and a beta of 1.27.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.08 earnings per share 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 5.69%. The firm had revenue of $304.03 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $248.93 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.02 EPS. Hecla Mining's quarterly revenue was up 23.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Hecla Mining will post 0.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Stuart Maurice Absolom sold 18,926 shares of Hecla Mining 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 59,410 shares of the company's stock, valued at $395,670.60. The trade was a 24.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.62% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Hecla Mining during the 1st quarter worth $31,000. DRW Securities LLC acquired a new position in Hecla Mining in the 1st quarter valued at about $54,000. PFG Investments LLC acquired a new position in Hecla Mining in the 1st quarter valued at about $56,000. Ground Swell Capital LLC acquired a new position in Hecla Mining in the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000. Finally, Hohimer Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Hecla Mining in the 1st quarter valued at about $58,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.01% of the company's stock.

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.