Citigroup Lowers Hess (NYSE:HES) Price Target to $145.00

Hess (NYSE:HES) had its price target decreased by Citigroup from $160.00 to $145.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. Citigroup currently has a neutral rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on HES. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Hess from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and raised their target price for the company from $166.00 to $172.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on Hess from $165.00 to $157.00 and set a sector perform rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Hess from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, May 13th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Hess from $193.00 to $192.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered Hess to an overweight rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $175.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $174.46.

Hess Price Performance

NYSE HES opened at $129.05 on Thursday. Hess has a fifty-two week low of $128.84 and a fifty-two week high of $167.75. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $142.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $148.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The firm has a market cap of $39.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.76 and a beta of 1.15.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.14. Hess had a return on equity of 27.43% and a net margin of 21.22%. The company had revenue of $3.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.24 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.65 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 40.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Hess will post 11.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.55%. This is a positive change from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. Hess’s payout ratio is currently 26.80%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hess

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. bought a new position in Hess during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Hess during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in Hess during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Hess during the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Hess by 47.6% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 273 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is currently 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.