Scotiabank Cuts Hess (NYSE:HES) Price Target to $146.58

Hess (NYSE:HES) had its price objective cut by Scotiabank from $164.00 to $146.58 in a research note released on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a sector perform rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Hess in a research note on Friday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Pickering Energy Partners raised shares of Hess to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $168.56.

Hess Stock Up 1.0 %

Hess stock opened at $128.42 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $146.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $142.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.27 and a beta of 0.88. Hess has a 1-year low of $123.79 and a 1-year high of $163.98.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.32. Hess had a return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 21.27%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Hess will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. Hess’s payout ratio is 22.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hess

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.30, for a total transaction of $27,877,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,384,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $379,879,364.70. This represents a 6.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 9.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hess

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of HES. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in Hess by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 2,154 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $287,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hess by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 3,971 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $528,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hess by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,682 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $224,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Hess by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,809 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $241,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in shares of Hess by 18.0% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 629 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

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.