Fisher Asset Management LLC Sells 7,907 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Fisher Asset Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 11.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 61,318 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 7,907 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $8,840,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of HES. Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Hess during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hess in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Hess in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hess in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hess in the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hess Stock Performance

NYSE:HES opened at $143.33 on Thursday. Hess Co. has a 1 year low of $129.12 and a 1 year high of $167.75. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $153.30 and a 200-day moving average of $148.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.95 and a beta of 1.19.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas producer reported $3.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $1.43. Hess had a net margin of 17.41% and a return on equity of 22.73%. The company had revenue of $3.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.98 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.13 earnings per share. Hess’s quarterly revenue was up 36.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hess Co. will post 9.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a $0.4375 dividend. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on HES shares. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Hess in a research note on Thursday. They issued a “sell” rating for the company. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Hess from $164.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 16th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Hess from $172.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Hess from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hess currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $177.83.

Hess 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.