First Majestic Silver (NYSE:AG) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.02 EPS

First Majestic Silver (NYSE:AG) (TSE:FR) posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The mining company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.33 by ($0.02), Briefing.com reports. First Majestic Silver had a return on equity of 7.25% and a net margin of 13.12%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.05 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 95.3% on a year-over-year basis.

First Majestic Silver Price Performance

NYSE:AG traded down $1.02 on Tuesday, reaching $22.56. The stock had a trading volume of 10,313,037 shares, compared to its average volume of 21,838,477. The company has a market capitalization of $11.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 63.94 and a beta of 0.85. First Majestic Silver has a 1-year low of $5.49 and a 1-year high of $32.03. The company has a quick ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 2.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $22.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $19.36.

First Majestic Silver Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th were given a $0.0083 dividend. This represents a $0.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.1%. This is a boost from First Majestic Silver’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.01. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 27th. First Majestic Silver’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.57%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Majestic Silver

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of First Majestic Silver by 77.4% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 604,186 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $4,042,000 after purchasing an additional 263,688 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in First Majestic Silver by 355.7% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,193,589 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $7,985,000 after acquiring an additional 931,690 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in First Majestic Silver by 12.4% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 240,083 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,994,000 after acquiring an additional 26,553 shares during the period. Creative Planning grew its holdings in First Majestic Silver by 25.3% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 28,837 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $238,000 after acquiring an additional 5,828 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of First Majestic Silver by 12.8% during the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 25,940 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $215,000 after acquiring an additional 2,936 shares during the last quarter. 27.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on AG shares. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of First Majestic Silver from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. HC Wainwright lifted their target price on shares of First Majestic Silver to $30.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of First Majestic Silver in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Scotiabank upgraded shares of First Majestic Silver to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of First Majestic Silver from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First Majestic Silver presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $25.00.

First Majestic Silver Company Profile

First Majestic Silver Corp. (NYSE:AG) engages in the production of silver from its wholly owned operations in Mexico. Headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia, the company focuses on acquiring, developing and operating high-grade silver projects. Established in 2002, First Majestic has built a multi-mine portfolio to supply silver primarily for the global industrial and investment markets while generating by-products such as gold, lead and zinc concentrates.

First Majestic’s principal operations are located in the historic Mexican Silver Belt, with producing mines including La Encantada in Coahuila, Santa Elena in Sonora and La Parrilla in Durango.