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

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

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on HES. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Hess from $157.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Hess from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Hess from $171.00 to $151.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 27th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Hess from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Hess from $210.00 to $194.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $164.50.

Hess Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HES opened at $147.26 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $140.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $141.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.16 and a beta of 1.17. Hess has a one year low of $123.79 and a one year high of $163.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced 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. The business 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 firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.64 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Hess will post 9.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Hess

In related news, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.91, for a total transaction of $851,460.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 27,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,914,019.71. This represents a 17.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO John B. Hess sold 125,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.08, for a total transaction of $18,385,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 217,894 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $32,047,849.52. This represents a 36.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders 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 institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HES. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Hess during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,054,000. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in shares of Hess by 424.8% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 19,466 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,971,000 after buying an additional 15,757 shares during the last quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Hess by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 590,326 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $87,085,000 after buying an additional 15,684 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its position in shares of Hess by 255.1% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 6,836 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,008,000 after buying an additional 4,911 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its position in shares of Hess by 295.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 84,277 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $11,445,000 after buying an additional 62,966 shares during the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is currently 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.