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

Equities researchers at StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Hess (NYSE:HES) in a report issued on Tuesday. The firm set a “hold” rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on HES. Susquehanna boosted their price target on Hess from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Hess from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Hess from $157.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Hess from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of Hess from $173.00 to $167.00 in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $163.30.

Hess Price Performance

Shares of HES opened at $145.35 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $139.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $142.38. Hess has a 52-week low of $123.79 and a 52-week high of $163.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.79 billion, a PE ratio of 16.94 and a beta of 1.15.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.88 by $0.26. Hess had a net margin of 20.58% and a return on equity of 27.41%. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.64 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Hess will post 9.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Hess

In other Hess news, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of Hess stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.91, for a total value of $851,460.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 27,581 shares in the company, valued at $3,914,019.71. The trade was a 17.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO John B. Hess sold 90,476 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.47, for a total transaction of $12,890,115.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 223,147 shares in the company, valued at $31,791,753.09. This represents a 28.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 314,370 shares of company stock worth $45,856,309. Company insiders own 9.76% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hess

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. acquired a new position in Hess in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its stake in shares of Hess by 22.7% in the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 22,606 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 4,186 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Hess by 59.8% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 262 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Hess during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Hess by 47.6% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 273 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.