Jennison Associates LLC Reduces Holdings in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Jennison Associates LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 79.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 275,393 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 1,064,661 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $39,701,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in shares of Hess by 6.9% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Arvest Investments Inc. purchased a new stake in Hess in the fourth quarter worth about $1,407,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its stake 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 worth $1,082,000 after buying an additional 7,022 shares during the period. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Hess during the 4th quarter valued at about $967,000. Finally, Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY grew its stake in shares of Hess by 75.3% during the 4th quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 39,249 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $5,658,000 after acquiring an additional 16,861 shares during the period. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on HES. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Hess from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Hess in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. They issued a “sell” rating on the stock. Susquehanna lifted their target price on Hess from $156.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on Hess from $172.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and four have issued 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 $177.42.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Andrew P. Slentz sold 1,062 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total transaction of $153,480.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 50,215 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,257,071.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Timothy B. Goodell sold 2,701 shares of Hess stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total value of $390,348.52. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 162,144 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,433,050.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Andrew P. Slentz sold 1,062 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total value of $153,480.24. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 50,215 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,257,071.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 155,798 shares of company stock valued at $22,811,166 over the last three months. 9.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hess Price Performance

HES stock opened at $156.98 on Wednesday. Hess Co. has a 52 week low of $124.27 and a 52 week high of $167.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.88 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $150.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $147.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.20. Hess had a net margin of 12.98% and a return on equity of 17.00%. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.76 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.78 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Hess Co. will post 8.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Monday, March 18th were given a $0.4375 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 15th. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.11%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.89%.

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.