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

StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Hess (NYSE:HES) in a report released on Wednesday. The brokerage set a “hold” rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Hess from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Pickering Energy Partners raised Hess to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Citigroup raised their target price on Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price target on Hess from $157.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hess presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.50.

Hess Price Performance

HES stock opened at $145.77 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $44.91 billion, a PE ratio of 16.99 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $140.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $139.43. Hess has a 12-month low of $123.79 and a 12-month high of $163.98.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.32. Hess had a return on equity of 27.41% and a net margin of 20.58%. As a group, research analysts predict that Hess will post 9.51 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Hess

In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 90,476 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.47, for a total value of $12,890,115.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 223,147 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,791,753.09. The trade was a 28.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 27,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,914,019.71. This represents a 17.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 314,370 shares of company stock valued at $45,856,309 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 9.76% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hess

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HES. HBK Investments L P lifted its position in shares of Hess by 16.7% in the 3rd quarter. HBK Investments L P now owns 7,117,820 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $966,600,000 after buying an additional 1,017,720 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Hess by 1.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,537,162 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $884,709,000 after acquiring an additional 74,085 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Hess by 58.9% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,753,126 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $509,675,000 after acquiring an additional 1,391,311 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in Hess by 31.0% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,318,822 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $450,696,000 after acquiring an additional 785,270 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hess by 2.5% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,755,376 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $238,380,000 after purchasing an additional 43,061 shares during the last quarter. 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.