Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) Trading Down 7% After Earnings Miss

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL)’s share price traded down 7% during mid-day trading on Friday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as low as $6.04 and last traded at $5.93. 4,258,712 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 16,128,181 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.37.

The basic materials company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.01). Hecla Mining had a positive return on equity of 0.75% and a negative net margin of 2.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on HL shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Hecla Mining from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. TD Securities cut their target price on shares of Hecla Mining from $8.50 to $8.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, National Bank Financial lowered Hecla Mining from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $7.94.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hecla Mining

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in HL. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Hecla Mining by 30.7% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,351 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 1,961 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Hecla Mining by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 173,616 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $852,000 after purchasing an additional 2,297 shares during the period. Hollencrest Capital Management raised its stake in shares of Hecla Mining by 1.0% during the third quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 248,727 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,659,000 after purchasing an additional 2,367 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in Hecla Mining by 19.2% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 18,075 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $121,000 after purchasing an additional 2,909 shares during the period. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC grew its position in Hecla Mining by 28.6% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 13,229 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $88,000 after buying an additional 2,944 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.01% of the company’s stock.

Hecla Mining Stock Down 7.8 %

The stock has a market cap of $3.69 billion, a P/E ratio of -146.93 and a beta of 1.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $5.44 and its 200-day moving average is $5.86.

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.