First Majestic Silver (NYSE:AG) Shares Up 7% – Here’s Why

First Majestic Silver Corp. (NYSE:AG) (TSE:FR)’s stock price shot up 7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $5.76 and last traded at $5.76. 4,932,010 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 52% from the average session volume of 10,285,332 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.38.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on AG shares. StockNews.com raised shares of First Majestic Silver from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Scotiabank dropped their target price on First Majestic Silver from $6.50 to $6.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $11.00 price target on shares of First Majestic Silver in a report on Friday, February 21st.

First Majestic Silver Stock Up 7.2 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.80 billion, a P/E ratio of -16.44 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 2.56, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $5.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $6.04.

First Majestic Silver (NYSE:AG) (TSE:FR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The mining company reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.05 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $172.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $227.77 million. First Majestic Silver had a negative return on equity of 3.07% and a negative net margin of 18.17%. As a group, research analysts predict that First Majestic Silver Corp. will post 0.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Majestic Silver Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $0.0057 dividend. This is a positive change from First Majestic Silver’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.40%. First Majestic Silver’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -5.71%.

Institutional Trading of First Majestic Silver

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Majestic Silver by 135.2% in the 4th quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 13,596,866 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $74,647,000 after buying an additional 7,816,177 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in First Majestic Silver by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,423,691 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $62,784,000 after acquiring an additional 598,996 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its stake in First Majestic Silver by 46.8% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 4,455,923 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $24,463,000 after acquiring an additional 1,420,937 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Majestic Silver by 897.8% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 3,759,181 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $20,638,000 after purchasing an additional 3,382,443 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of First Majestic Silver by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,472,159 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $19,060,000 after purchasing an additional 121,892 shares during the period. 27.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Majestic Silver Company Profile

First Majestic Silver Corp. engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of mineral properties with a focus on silver and gold production in North America. Its projects include the San Dimas mine covering an area of approximately 71,867 hectares located in Durango State, Mexico; the Santa Elena that covers an area of approximately 102,244 hectares located in Sonora State, México; and the La Encantada covering an area of approximately 4,076 hectares located in Coahuila State, México.