Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Shares Gap Up - Time to Buy?

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL - Get Free Report) shares gapped up prior to trading 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 subject of several research reports. TD Securities decreased their target price on shares of Hecla Mining from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 5th. Roth Mkm cut their target price on shares of Hecla Mining from $6.60 to $6.50 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $11.50 target price on shares of Hecla Mining in a report on Friday, February 14th. BMO Capital Markets reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $5.50 price target (down from $7.50) on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Hecla Mining from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, February 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hecla Mining has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $7.13.

Hecla Mining Trading Down 2.6%

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $5.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $5.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The company has a market cap of $3.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 125.63 and a beta of 1.44.

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

Hecla Mining Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.0038 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.24%. Hecla Mining's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.09%.

Insider Transactions at Hecla Mining

In related news, Director Catherine J. Boggs bought 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $4.99 per share, for a total transaction of $99,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 348,169 shares in the company, valued at $1,737,363.31. The trade was a 6.09% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Stuart Maurice Absolom sold 18,926 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.66, for a total transaction of $126,047.16. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hecla Mining

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Hecla Mining by 30.7% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,351 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 1,961 shares during the period. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 31.9% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 23,847 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $117,000 after purchasing an additional 5,772 shares during the last quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management raised its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 13.0% during the 4th quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 42,840 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $210,000 after purchasing an additional 4,921 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 947,881 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $4,654,000 after buying an additional 43,023 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. grew its position in Hecla Mining by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 800,382 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $3,930,000 after buying an additional 46,020 shares during the period. 63.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.