Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Has $2.03 Million Stock Position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 22.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,739 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,515 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Hess were worth $2,027,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of HES. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. acquired a new position in shares of Hess during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Hess during the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Hess during the first quarter worth approximately $36,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Hess by 47.6% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 273 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. Finally, Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Hess during the 1st quarter valued at $52,000. 88.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of HES stock opened at $138.96 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $135.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $146.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. Hess Co. has a 12 month low of $123.79 and a 12 month high of $167.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.28 and a beta of 1.15.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.14. Hess had a return on equity of 27.43% and a net margin of 21.22%. The company had revenue of $3.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.24 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.65 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 40.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Hess Co. will post 10.46 EPS for the current year.

Hess Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. This is an increase from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Hess’s payout ratio is presently 30.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on HES. UBS Group decreased their price target on Hess from $192.00 to $173.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Hess from $171.00 to $151.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Hess from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $166.00 to $172.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of Hess from $151.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets downgraded Hess to an “overweight” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $175.00 to $160.00 in a report on Monday, August 19th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $165.15.

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.