Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) Shares Sold by Artemis Investment Management LLP

Artemis Investment Management LLP cut its stake in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 32.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 103,931 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 50,133 shares during the period. Artemis Investment Management LLP’s holdings in Hess were worth $15,856,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its stake in Hess by 17.9% during the 1st quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 507 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE lifted its position in shares of Hess by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 1,616 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $233,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Founders Capital Management grew its stake in Hess by 8.3% in the first quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 1,300 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $198,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Hess by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 11,181 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,612,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quent Capital LLC raised its stake in Hess by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 872 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $126,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of HES stock opened at $147.52 on Friday. Hess Co. has a 12-month low of $129.12 and a 12-month high of $167.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.59 and a beta of 1.19. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $152.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $148.75.

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

Hess Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on HES shares. Susquehanna boosted their price target on Hess from $164.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 16th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Hess from $172.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. 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 report on Wednesday, June 5th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Hess in a research report on Friday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective 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. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hess presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.