Why Hecla Mining Fell as Much as 12% This Week
Shares of precious metals miner Hecla Mining (NYSE: HL) were lower by as much as 12% at one point this week according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence. That's not a shock given that silver has been in a downtrend recently. At the start of trading on Friday, Jan. 28, the shares were still sitting at the week's lows.
Hecla Mining lays claim to being one of the largest silver miners in North America, producing 40% of the precious metal that gets mined in the United States. It has even tied its dividend to the price of silver, increasing the quarterly payment as silver prices rise. Precious metals miners are generally leveraged to the price of the commodities they produce. Once they cover their mining costs, further increases in the price of silver and gold fall pretty quickly to the bottom line. Add in the silver-linked dividend here and Hecla is, perhaps, even more leveraged than most.
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Source Fool.com
