Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) Receives $178.58 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the twelve brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $178.58.

Several equities research analysts recently commented on HES shares. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Hess from $167.00 to $166.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Hess from $172.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Hess from $165.00 to $157.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Hess in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of HES opened at $132.39 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $148.21 and its 200-day moving average is $149.76. Hess has a 12-month low of $131.61 and a 12-month high of $167.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.27 and a beta of 1.16.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.14. Hess had a return on equity of 27.43% and a net margin of 21.22%. The company had revenue of $3.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.24 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.65 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 40.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Hess will post 11.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were issued a $0.4375 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.32%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.80%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hess

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HES. Manchester Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Hess by 1.4% in the first quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 5,102 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $779,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Hess by 1.6% during the second quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,599 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $678,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Hess by 7.3% in the second quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,074 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $158,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its stake in Hess by 17.9% in the first quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 507 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Hess by 16.9% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 540 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $80,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

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.