Insider Selling: Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) COO Sells 5,170 Shares of Stock

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) COO Rodriguez Carlos Robert Aguiar sold 5,170 shares of Hecla Mining stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.18, for a total value of $26,780.60. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 137,178 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $710,582.04. This trade represents a 3.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Hecla Mining Stock Performance

Shares of HL stock opened at $5.09 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.21 billion, a PE ratio of 101.72 and a beta of 1.91. Hecla Mining has a 52-week low of $3.41 and a 52-week high of $7.68. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $5.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $5.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The basic materials company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.05 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $249.66 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $229.21 million. Hecla Mining had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 3.10%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Hecla Mining will post 0.21 EPS for the current year.

Hecla Mining Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $0.0038 dividend. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Hecla Mining’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in Hecla Mining in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. acquired a new position in Hecla Mining during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Hecla Mining by 771.8% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,013 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 4,438 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Hecla Mining during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Hecla Mining by 30.7% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,351 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,961 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on HL shares. StockNews.com raised Hecla Mining from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 17th. National Bank Financial cut Hecla Mining from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. TD Securities cut their target price on Hecla Mining from $7.00 to $6.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 21st. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $11.50 target price on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Roth Mkm cut their target price on Hecla Mining from $6.60 to $6.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hecla Mining has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $8.00.

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.