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

StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Hess (NYSE:HES) in a research report report published on Wednesday morning. The firm issued a hold rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the company. UBS Group reduced their target price on Hess from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Susquehanna reduced their target price on Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Hess from $151.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Hess from $164.00 to $146.58 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on Hess from $193.00 to $191.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hess currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $162.16.

Hess Price Performance

Shares of HES opened at $130.22 on Wednesday. Hess has a 52-week low of $123.79 and a 52-week high of $161.69. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $138.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $141.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.28 billion, a PE ratio of 14.47 and a beta of 0.61.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by ($0.14). Hess had a net margin of 21.27% and a return on equity of 26.32%. The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.16 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Hess will post 8.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hess

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Advisory Alpha LLC lifted its holdings in Hess by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 2,203 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $293,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Hess by 441.8% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 54,831 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $7,293,000 after buying an additional 44,710 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc. purchased a new stake in Hess in the 4th quarter worth approximately $323,000. True North Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Hess in the 4th quarter worth approximately $216,000. Finally, CX Institutional lifted its holdings in Hess by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. CX Institutional now owns 2,135 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $284,000 after buying an additional 128 shares during the period. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.