Hess (NYSE:HES) Now Covered by StockNews.com

Equities research analysts at StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Hess (NYSE:HES) in a note issued to investors on Wednesday. The brokerage set a “sell” rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Hess from $169.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Mizuho upped their price target on Hess from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price target on Hess from $152.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $176.75.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of HES stock opened at $151.78 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $46.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.73 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $149.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $146.79. Hess has a 12-month low of $124.27 and a 12-month high of $167.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.76 billion. Hess had a return on equity of 17.00% and a net margin of 12.98%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.78 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Hess will post 8.09 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Hess

In other news, CEO John B. Hess sold 73,885 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.87, for a total transaction of $10,777,604.95. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 138,718 shares in the company, valued at $20,234,794.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 73,885 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.87, for a total value of $10,777,604.95. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 138,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,234,794.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Andrew P. Slentz sold 1,062 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total value of $153,480.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 50,215 shares in the company, valued at $7,257,071.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 155,798 shares of company stock worth $22,811,166 over the last quarter. 9.76% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Hess in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hess during the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hess during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, KB Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hess during the first quarter valued at about $26,000. 88.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.