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

StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Hess (NYSE:HES) in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning. The firm issued a hold rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

HES has been the topic of several other research reports. Citigroup upped their price target on Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Hess from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Hess from $210.00 to $194.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Hess from $173.00 to $167.00 in a report on Friday, September 13th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.50.

Hess Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE HES opened at $128.19 on Friday. Hess has a 12-month low of $123.79 and a 12-month high of $163.98. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $140.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $140.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The company has a market cap of $39.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.94 and a beta of 1.17.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its earnings results 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 net margin of 20.58% and a return on equity of 27.41%. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.96 billion. During the same period in the prior 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, research analysts expect that Hess will post 9.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Hess’s payout ratio is presently 23.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hess

In related news, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of Hess stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.91, for a total value of $851,460.00. Following 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John B. Hess sold 92,894 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.80, for a total value of $13,729,733.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 229,465 shares in the company, valued at $33,914,927. The trade was a 28.82 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 314,370 shares of company stock valued at $45,856,309. Company insiders own 9.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HES. Primecap Management Co. CA increased its position in shares of Hess by 4.4% during the 2nd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 8,098,012 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,194,619,000 after purchasing an additional 340,490 shares during the last quarter. HBK Investments L P grew its stake in shares of Hess by 16.7% in the third quarter. HBK Investments L P now owns 7,117,820 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $966,600,000 after buying an additional 1,017,720 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Hess by 1.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,537,162 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $884,709,000 after buying an additional 74,085 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Hess by 58.9% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,753,126 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $509,675,000 after acquiring an additional 1,391,311 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in Hess by 31.0% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,318,822 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $450,696,000 after acquiring an additional 785,270 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

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.