Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $164.50.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Mizuho cut their price objective on Hess from $210.00 to $194.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Hess from $171.00 to $151.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 27th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Hess from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Hess from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Hess from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 5th.

Hess Trading Up 0.2 %

HES opened at $147.26 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.13. Hess has a fifty-two week low of $123.79 and a fifty-two week high of $163.98. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $140.72 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $141.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.16 and a beta of 1.17.

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

Insider Activity at Hess

In other news, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.91, for a total transaction of $851,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 27,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,914,019.71. This represents a 17.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO John B. Hess sold 90,476 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.47, for a total value of $12,890,115.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 223,147 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,791,753.09. The trade was a 28.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 314,370 shares of company stock valued at $45,856,309. 9.76% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hess

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Groupama Asset Managment lifted its holdings in Hess by 22.7% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 22,606 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 4,186 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in shares of Hess by 59.8% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 262 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Hess during the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Hess by 47.6% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 273 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank bought a new position in Hess in the 3rd quarter valued at $48,000. 88.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.