Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Upgraded to Sell by StockNews.com

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com to a “sell” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $10.25 target price on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Thursday. Roth Mkm raised their target price on shares of Hecla Mining from $4.60 to $6.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, National Bank Financial reaffirmed an “outperform market weight” rating on shares of Hecla Mining in a research note on Monday, April 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $6.89.

Hecla Mining Trading Up 11.6 %

HL stock traded up $0.57 during trading on Thursday, reaching $5.48. The company had a trading volume of 18,848,552 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,880,246. Hecla Mining has a 52 week low of $3.33 and a 52 week high of $6.23. The company has a market cap of $3.38 billion, a P/E ratio of -36.53 and a beta of 2.21. The business has a 50 day moving average of $4.79 and a 200 day moving average of $4.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.65 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The basic materials company reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by ($0.02). Hecla Mining had a negative net margin of 11.69% and a negative return on equity of 0.27%. The business had revenue of $160.69 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $151.51 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.02 EPS. Hecla Mining’s revenue for the quarter was down 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Hecla Mining will post 0.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Byrne Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Hecla Mining in the first quarter worth approximately $34,000. Advisor Partners II LLC purchased a new stake in Hecla Mining in the third quarter worth approximately $52,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 27.7% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,447 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 2,916 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hecla Mining during the 4th quarter worth $72,000. Finally, Banco Santander S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 15.6% during the 3rd quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 18,687 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $73,000 after acquiring an additional 2,525 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.01% of the company’s stock.

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.