Truist Financial Corp Has $2.13 Million Stock Position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Truist Financial Corp cut its stake in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 39.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,788 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 9,689 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp’s holdings in Hess were worth $2,132,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in shares of Hess by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 129,977 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $18,737,000 after purchasing an additional 8,439 shares during the period. Arvest Investments Inc. bought a new position in Hess in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,407,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hess by 1,456.8% in the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 7,504 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,082,000 after buying an additional 7,022 shares during the period. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter worth $967,000. Finally, Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY raised its holdings in shares of Hess by 75.3% during the fourth quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 39,249 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $5,658,000 after acquiring an additional 16,861 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Price Performance

NYSE:HES opened at $159.95 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $153.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $147.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.28 billion, a PE ratio of 24.49 and a beta of 1.24. Hess Co. has a 1-year low of $124.27 and a 1-year high of $167.75.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas producer reported $3.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $1.43. Hess had a return on equity of 22.73% and a net margin of 17.41%. The business had revenue of $3.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.98 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.13 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 36.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Hess Co. will post 9.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 18th were issued a dividend of $0.4375 per share. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 15th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.80%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 73,885 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.87, for a total transaction 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 $20,234,794.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Timothy B. Goodell sold 2,701 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 transaction of $390,348.52. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 162,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,433,050.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, 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 value of $10,777,604.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 138,718 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,234,794.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 155,798 shares of company stock valued at $22,811,166. 9.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on HES. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Hess from $172.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Mizuho lifted their target price on Hess from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on Hess from $156.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Hess in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. They set a “sell” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hess has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $177.42.

Hess 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.