Hess (NYSE:HES) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Hess (NYSE:HES) in a research report report published on Monday. The firm issued a hold rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on HES. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Hess from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Hess from $210.00 to $194.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 16th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Hess from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Hess from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Pickering Energy Partners upgraded shares of Hess to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $170.50.

Hess Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:HES opened at $144.74 on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $140.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $139.42. Hess has a one year low of $123.79 and a one year high of $163.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.60 billion, a PE ratio of 16.87 and a beta of 1.18.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.96 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.64 earnings per share. Hess’s quarterly revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Hess will post 9.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.38%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of Hess stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.91, for a total transaction of $851,460.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 27,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,914,019.71. This trade represents a 17.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John B. Hess sold 90,476 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.47, for a total transaction of $12,890,115.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 223,147 shares of the company’s stock, 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. Insiders sold 314,370 shares of company stock worth $45,856,309 over the last three months. Insiders own 9.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HES. Groupama Asset Managment raised its stake in Hess by 22.7% in the third quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 22,606 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 4,186 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in Hess by 59.8% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 262 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hess in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in shares of Hess during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Hess by 157.2% during the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 355 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hess Company Profile

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.