StockNews.com Begins Coverage on Hess (NYSE:HES)

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Hess (NYSE:HES) in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday. The brokerage set a “hold” rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on HES. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Pickering Energy Partners raised shares of Hess to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Hess from $157.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Hess from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Hess from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.50.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of Hess stock opened at $145.39 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.95 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The business has a 50-day moving average of $141.00 and a 200 day moving average of $139.47. Hess has a 12 month low of $123.79 and a 12 month high of $163.98.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.96 billion. Hess had a net margin of 20.58% and a return on equity of 27.41%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.64 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Hess will post 9.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 125,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.08, for a total value of $18,385,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 217,894 shares in the company, valued at $32,047,849.52. The trade was a 36.45 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.91, for a total value of $851,460.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 27,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,914,019.71. The trade was a 17.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 314,370 shares of company stock valued at $45,856,309. 9.76% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hess

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HES. Perigon Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hess by 158.9% in the fourth quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,659 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,019,000 after acquiring an additional 4,701 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Hess by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 22,091 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,938,000 after purchasing an additional 1,374 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Hess by 44.4% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,760 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $239,000 after purchasing an additional 541 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional raised its stake in shares of Hess by 6.4% during 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 in the last quarter. Finally, True North Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hess during the 4th quarter worth approximately $216,000. 88.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.