Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Shares Gap Down - Here's Why

Key Points

• Hecla Mining shares opened at $10.88, a decline from the previous close of $11.35, indicating a significant downward gap before the market opened.
• Brokerage analysts have recently adjusted their ratings, with CIBC increasing their target price to $8.00 and Wall Street Zen upgrading the stock from a "hold" to a "buy" rating.
• The company reported a 23.8% year-over-year revenue increase of $304.03 million for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' estimates and resulting in an EPS of $0.08.

Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) shares gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $11.35, but opened at $10.88. Hecla Mining shares last traded at $11.28, with a volume of 2,967,995 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on HL. CIBC raised their target price on Hecla Mining from $7.50 to $8.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Roth Capital reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Hecla Mining in a report on Thursday, August 7th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Hecla Mining from $6.00 to $6.50 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Hecla Mining from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, National Bank Financial raised Hecla Mining to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $7.36.

Hecla Mining Stock Down 0.7%

The company has a market cap of $7.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 70.47 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.99. The business's 50 day moving average price is $7.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $6.27.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.08 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.03. Hecla Mining had a return on equity of 5.51% and a net margin of 9.55%.The business had revenue of $304.03 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $248.93 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.02 EPS. Hecla Mining's revenue for the quarter was up 23.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Hecla Mining Company will post 0.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hecla Mining Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Friday, August 22nd were issued a $0.0038 dividend. This represents a $0.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 22nd. Hecla Mining's payout ratio is currently 6.25%.

Insider Transactions at Hecla Mining

In other Hecla Mining news, VP Stuart Maurice Absolom sold 14,472 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at $826,428. This represents a 16.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Hecla Mining by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 62,830,935 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $349,340,000 after purchasing an additional 1,437,895 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 7.2% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 30,032,111 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $179,892,000 after buying an additional 2,029,327 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 8.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 28,827,696 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $160,285,000 after buying an additional 2,306,239 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its stake in Hecla Mining by 14.7% in the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 20,118,397 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $120,509,000 after acquiring an additional 2,574,855 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in 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 worth $102,144,000 after acquiring an additional 4,928,130 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 63.01% of the company's stock.

Hecla Mining Company Profile

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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