Mariner LLC Has $3.56 Million Position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Mariner LLC grew its stake in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,797 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after buying an additional 1,060 shares during the period. Mariner LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $3,564,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HES. J.Safra Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of Hess in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Hess during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in Hess during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hess in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. boosted its position in shares of Hess by 225.6% during the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 293 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group cut their price target on Hess from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Hess from $164.00 to $146.58 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Pickering Energy Partners raised Hess to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on Hess in a research note on Saturday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $166.26.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hess

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.30, for a total transaction of $27,877,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,384,679 shares in the company, valued at $379,879,364.70. This trade represents a 6.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 9.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hess Trading Down 3.3 %

NYSE:HES opened at $126.39 on Tuesday. Hess Co. has a 52 week low of $123.79 and a 52 week high of $163.98. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $144.77 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $142.21. The firm has a market cap of $38.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.04 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.12.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.32. Hess had a return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 21.27%. On average, equities analysts expect that Hess Co. will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

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.