Hess Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:HES)

Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) saw some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders bought 24,234 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 382% compared to the typical daily volume of 5,032 put options.

Hess Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:HES opened at $147.25 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $152.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $148.69. The stock has a market cap of $45.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.55 and a beta of 1.19. Hess has a fifty-two week low of $129.12 and a fifty-two week high of $167.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas producer reported $3.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $1.43. The firm had revenue of $3.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.98 billion. Hess had a net margin of 17.41% and a return on equity of 22.73%. The firm’s revenue was up 36.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.13 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Hess will post 10.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a $0.4375 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.19%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.80%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hess

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in Hess by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 129,977 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $18,737,000 after purchasing an additional 8,439 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its stake in Hess by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 123,339 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $17,781,000 after purchasing an additional 1,210 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc increased its stake in Hess by 14.4% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 100,330 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $14,464,000 after purchasing an additional 12,649 shares during the last quarter. Alpine Associates Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter worth approximately $237,100,000. Finally, Arvest Investments Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,407,000. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on HES. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Hess from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Hess from $172.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Susquehanna increased their price target on shares of Hess from $164.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 16th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Hess in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. They set a “sell” rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $177.83.

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.