Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Hecla Mining saw unusually heavy trading volume, with 54.7 million shares changing hands, up 142% from the prior session, while the stock finished slightly lower at $14.43.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: recent moves included one downgrade to Hold, one upgrade to Buy, and several price-target cuts. Overall, the stock carries a consensus rating of Hold with an average target price of $24.12.
• The company’s latest earnings beat revenue expectations but missed EPS estimates, reporting $0.24 per share versus $0.27 expected on $411.43 million in revenue, though sales still rose 57.4% year over year.

Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) shares saw strong trading volume on Friday . 54,692,482 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 142% from the previous session's volume of 22,585,359 shares.The stock last traded at $14.43 and had previously closed at $14.52.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HL has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Hecla Mining from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. HC Wainwright reduced their target price on shares of Hecla Mining from $36.50 to $26.75 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised shares of Hecla Mining from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $24.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Hecla Mining from $25.00 to $21.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Hecla Mining from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hecla Mining has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $24.12.

Hecla Mining Trading Down 0.7%

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $16.46 and a 200 day moving average of $19.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.67 billion, a PE ratio of 35.21 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 4.53 and a current ratio of 4.94.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.27 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $411.43 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $407.63 million. Hecla Mining had a return on equity of 16.89% and a net margin of 17.41%.The firm's revenue was up 57.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.04 EPS.

Hecla Mining Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.0038 per share. This represents a $0.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 22nd. Hecla Mining's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2.44%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hecla Mining

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 10.2% during the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 218,916 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $3,378,000 after acquiring an additional 20,300 shares in the last quarter. Steadtrust LLC boosted its holdings in Hecla Mining by 1.8% in the second quarter. Steadtrust LLC now owns 416,180 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $6,422,000 after purchasing an additional 7,500 shares during the last quarter. Tactive Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Hecla Mining by 7.7% in the second quarter. Tactive Advisors LLC now owns 45,715 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $705,000 after purchasing an additional 3,282 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in Hecla Mining during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,941,000. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Hecla Mining by 87.7% during the 2nd quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 14,241 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $220,000 after purchasing an additional 6,652 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.01% of the company's stock.

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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