Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Shares Gap Up - Here's What Happened

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) shares gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $6.11, but opened at $6.46. Hecla Mining shares last traded at $6.82, with a volume of 11,294,961 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Hecla Mining from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, February 17th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $11.50 price objective on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Roth Mkm reduced their price objective on Hecla Mining from $6.60 to $6.50 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $5.50 price objective (down previously from $7.50) on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, TD Securities reduced their price objective on Hecla Mining from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $7.13.

Hecla Mining Trading Down 2.1%

The firm has a market cap of $3.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 126.31 and a beta of 1.44. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $5.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $5.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.08.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $261.34 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $238.50 million. Hecla Mining had a return on equity of 3.10% and a net margin of 3.85%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 37.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.01) EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Hecla Mining will post 0.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hecla Mining Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.0038 dividend. This represents a $0.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. Hecla Mining's payout ratio is 9.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 59,410 shares in the company, valued at approximately $395,670.60. The trade was a 24.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Catherine J. Boggs bought 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $4.99 per share, for a total transaction of $99,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 348,169 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,737,363.31. This represents a 6.09% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Strs Ohio purchased a new position in Hecla Mining during the first quarter valued at $188,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 24.1% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,959,276 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $10,894,000 after acquiring an additional 380,448 shares in the last quarter. Aristeia Capital L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Hecla Mining in the first quarter valued at about $333,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 20.9% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,285,345 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $23,827,000 after acquiring an additional 739,360 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 12.7% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 12,124,216 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $67,411,000 after acquiring an additional 1,366,700 shares in the last quarter. 63.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.