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

Key Points

• Hecla Mining's shares reached a new 52-week high of $12.55, with a last trading price of $12.27 and a trading volume of over 15.6 million shares.
• Analysts' ratings for Hecla Mining indicate a mix, with two analysts issuing a Buy rating, five giving a Hold rating, and an average price target of $7.36.
• The company reported a 23.8% year-over-year revenue increase, with quarterly earnings of $0.08 per share, surpassing analyst expectations of $0.05.

Shares of Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $12.55 and last traded at $12.27, with a volume of 15639628 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $12.10.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on HL shares. Roth Capital reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. CIBC increased their target price on shares of Hecla Mining from $7.50 to $8.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Hecla Mining to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. National Bankshares set a $7.00 target price on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Hecla Mining from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Hecla Mining currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $7.36.

Hecla Mining Stock Performance

The company's 50-day moving average price is $8.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $6.72. 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 stock has a market cap of $8.22 billion, a PE ratio of 76.70 and a beta of 1.31.

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 the consensus estimate of $0.05 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $304.03 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $248.93 million. Hecla Mining had a net margin of 9.55% and a return on equity of 5.51%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 23.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.02 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Hecla Mining Company will post 0.21 EPS for the current year.

Hecla Mining Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 22nd were given a dividend of $0.0038 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.1%. Hecla Mining's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 6.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hecla Mining

In other news, VP Stuart Maurice Absolom sold 14,472 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.29, for a total transaction of $163,388.88. Following the sale, the vice president owned 73,200 shares in the company, valued at approximately $826,428. This trade represents a 16.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.62% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HL. Pale Fire Capital SE bought a new position in shares of Hecla Mining during the 1st quarter valued at $41,360,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 40.6% during the 2nd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 17,052,346 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $102,144,000 after purchasing an additional 4,928,130 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Hecla Mining in the 1st quarter worth $18,410,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Hecla Mining by 869.3% in the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 3,274,065 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $18,204,000 after acquiring an additional 2,936,288 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC grew its holdings in Hecla Mining by 14.7% in the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 20,118,397 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $120,509,000 after acquiring an additional 2,574,855 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.

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