Park Avenue Securities LLC Sells 446 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Park Avenue Securities LLC reduced its position in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 20.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,748 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 446 shares during the quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $267,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in shares of Hess by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 129,977 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $18,737,000 after acquiring an additional 8,439 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its position in shares of Hess by 1.0% during the 4th 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 acquiring an additional 1,210 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Hess by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 100,330 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $14,464,000 after acquiring an additional 12,649 shares during the last quarter. Alpine Associates Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hess during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $237,100,000. Finally, Arvest Investments Inc. purchased a new stake in Hess during the 4th quarter valued at $1,407,000. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hess Price Performance

HES opened at $148.12 on Tuesday. Hess Co. has a 12-month low of $129.12 and a 12-month high of $167.75. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $152.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $148.94. The company has a market capitalization of $45.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.68 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81.

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

Hess Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th were issued a $0.4375 dividend. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.80%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on HES shares. Susquehanna increased 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. StockNews.com started coverage on Hess in a report on Friday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Citigroup increased their price target on Hess from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Hess from $172.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price target on Hess from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average 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.