Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Shares Down 1.6% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Hecla shares fell 1.6% to $20.46 on Friday with trading volume about 36% below average, leaving the stock below its 50‑day moving average ($23.53) but above the 200‑day ($16.84).
• Analysts hold a consensus Hold rating (1 Buy, 8 Hold, 1 Sell) with an average price target of $21.63, though individual targets range widely from $13 to $32 and several firms recently raised their outlooks.
• Two company VPs sold substantial shares recently—reducing insider ownership to just 0.62%—while institutional ownership is high (~63%) as major funds (Vanguard, VanEck, State Street) increased their stakes.

Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) fell 1.6% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $19.90 and last traded at $20.46. 16,956,870 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 36% from the average session volume of 26,555,719 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.80.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on HL. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lifted their price target on shares of Hecla Mining from $27.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Roth Mkm set a $13.00 price target on Hecla Mining in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $26.50 price target on Hecla Mining in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Hecla Mining from $16.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $21.63.

Hecla Mining Price Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $23.53 and a 200-day moving average of $16.84. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The company has a market cap of $13.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.76 and a beta of 1.22.

Hecla Mining Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be paid a $0.0038 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 9th. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.1%. Hecla Mining's payout ratio is presently 2.04%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP David C. Sienko sold 207,553 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.42, for a total transaction of $4,030,679.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 906,370 shares in the company, valued at $17,601,705.40. This trade represents a 18.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Kurt Allen sold 52,219 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.91, for a total value of $1,144,118.29. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 216,641 shares in the company, valued at $4,746,604.31. This trade represents a 19.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.62% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Hecla Mining by 13.4% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 71,349,059 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $863,324,000 after purchasing an additional 8,452,401 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 32.4% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 49,881,495 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $603,566,000 after buying an additional 12,197,740 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 14.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,485,817 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $417,278,000 after buying an additional 4,453,706 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 38.0% in the 3rd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 23,524,912 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $284,651,000 after buying an additional 6,472,566 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 14.7% during the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 20,118,397 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $120,509,000 after buying an additional 2,574,855 shares in the last quarter. 63.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Hecla Mining

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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