Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Trading Down 14.5% – Time to Sell?

Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL) was down 14.5% on Friday . The company traded as low as $22.13 and last traded at $22.4930. Approximately 49,120,413 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 60% from the average daily volume of 30,727,441 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.32.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Hecla Mining from $16.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Roth Mkm restated a “sell” rating and set a $16.00 target price on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Tuesday. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Hecla Mining from $15.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday. HC Wainwright boosted their price target on shares of Hecla Mining from $16.50 to $36.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Hecla Mining from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, November 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.00.

Hecla Mining Trading Down 14.5%

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $20.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $14.00. The firm has a market cap of $15.07 billion, a PE ratio of 72.56 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $409.54 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $315.60 million. Hecla Mining had a net margin of 16.35% and a return on equity of 7.87%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 67.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.03 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Hecla Mining Company will post 0.21 EPS for the current year.

Hecla Mining Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 8th. Investors of record on Monday, November 24th were issued a dividend of $0.0038 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 24th. This represents a $0.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.1%. Hecla Mining’s payout ratio is presently 3.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP David C. Sienko sold 207,553 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the vice president directly owned 906,370 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,601,705.40. This trade represents a 18.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Russell Douglas Lawlar sold 18,535 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.02, for a total transaction of $278,395.70. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 426,679 shares of company stock worth $7,678,773 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hecla Mining

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of HL. Veracity Capital LLC increased its holdings in Hecla Mining by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Veracity Capital LLC now owns 11,005 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $211,000 after buying an additional 419 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Hecla Mining by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 31,853 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $611,000 after acquiring an additional 434 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,786 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $111,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust increased its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 11,188 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $215,000 after purchasing an additional 690 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its holdings in Hecla Mining by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 12,720 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $154,000 after purchasing an additional 918 shares during the period. Institutional investors 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.