Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Has $1.61 Million Position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 15.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,864 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after buying an additional 1,548 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Hess were worth $1,611,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of HES. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Hess by 13.7% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,841 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $892,000 after buying an additional 706 shares during the period. Norden Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hess during the 1st quarter worth about $998,000. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. grew its position in shares of Hess by 35.6% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 6,165 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $941,000 after buying an additional 1,620 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its position in shares of Hess by 20.0% in the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 9,969 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,522,000 after purchasing an additional 1,663 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Hess by 24.2% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 66,362 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $10,129,000 after purchasing an additional 12,915 shares during the period. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Hess from $210.00 to $194.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Hess from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Hess from $157.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Hess in a research report on Saturday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Hess from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $164.00.

Hess Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of Hess stock opened at $137.75 on Friday. Hess Co. has a 12-month low of $123.79 and a 12-month high of $163.98. The stock has a market cap of $42.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.05 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The business’s 50 day moving average is $135.31 and its 200-day moving average is $144.07.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.26. Hess had a return on equity of 27.41% and a net margin of 20.58%. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.64 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Hess Co. will post 9.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.45%. This is a boost from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.31%.

About Hess

Hess Corporation, an exploration and production company, explores, develops, produces, purchases, transports, and sells crude oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and natural gas. The company operates in two segments, Exploration and Production, and Midstream. It conducts production operations primarily in the United States, Guyana, the Malaysia/Thailand Joint Development Area, and Malaysia; and exploration activities principally offshore Guyana, the U.S.