739,260 Hecla Mining Company $HL Shares Bought by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its position in Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL) by 106.6% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,432,966 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 739,260 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Hecla Mining were worth $24,403,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. EFG International AG bought a new stake in shares of Hecla Mining in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Hecla Mining by 154.6% during the first quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,470 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new position in Hecla Mining during the second quarter worth $39,000. Bullseye Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Hecla Mining during the second quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in Hecla Mining in the third quarter worth $47,000. 63.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hecla Mining Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:HL opened at $14.13 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $9.49 billion, a PE ratio of 25.23 and a beta of 1.44. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $16.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.18. Hecla Mining Company has a fifty-two week low of $12.80 and a fifty-two week high of $34.17.

Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The basic materials company reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.08. Hecla Mining had a net margin of 24.11% and a return on equity of 20.94%. The firm had revenue of $394.82 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $340.10 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.15 EPS. Hecla Mining’s quarterly revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Hecla Mining Company will post 0.46 EPS for the current year.

Hecla Mining Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.0037 per share. This represents a $0.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 23rd. Hecla Mining’s payout ratio is 1.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank lowered their target price on shares of Hecla Mining from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Hecla Mining from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Hecla Mining from $24.00 to $20.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Hecla Mining in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $22.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Hecla Mining to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hecla Mining currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $23.22.

Hecla Mining Company Profile

Hecla Mining Company is a precious-metals mining company founded in 1891 and headquartered in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. It explores for, develops and operates mines producing silver and gold, with lead and zinc recovered as byproducts at some operations. Hecla’s mining operations are located in the United States and Canada, including the Greens Creek mine in Alaska, the Lucky Friday mine in Idaho, the Keno Hill silver district in Yukon and the Casa Berardi gold mine in Quebec.