UBS Group Boosts Hess (NYSE:HES) Price Target to $185.00

Hess (NYSE:HES) had its price objective increased by research analysts at UBS Group from $173.00 to $185.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock. UBS Group’s price target indicates a potential upside of 28.50% from the company’s current price.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Hess in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Hess from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Hess from $157.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Hess from $173.00 to $167.00 in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Hess from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Hess currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.50.

Hess Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of HES stock opened at $143.97 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.26. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $140.95 and its 200-day moving average is $141.91. The stock has a market cap of $44.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.78 and a beta of 1.17. Hess has a 52-week low of $123.79 and a 52-week high of $163.98.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.26. Hess had a net margin of 20.58% and a return on equity of 27.41%. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.96 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.64 EPS. Hess’s quarterly revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Hess will post 9.74 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Hess news, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.91, for a total value of $851,460.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 27,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,914,019.71. This trade represents a 17.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John B. Hess sold 92,894 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.80, for a total transaction of $13,729,733.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 229,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,914,927. The trade was a 28.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 314,370 shares of company stock valued at $45,856,309. Insiders own 9.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Hess by 58.9% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,753,126 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $509,675,000 after purchasing an additional 1,391,311 shares in the last quarter. HBK Investments L P lifted its position in shares of Hess by 16.7% during the third quarter. HBK Investments L P now owns 7,117,820 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $966,600,000 after purchasing an additional 1,017,720 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in shares of Hess by 31.0% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,318,822 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $450,696,000 after purchasing an additional 785,270 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Hess by 34.5% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,835,486 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $418,291,000 after purchasing an additional 726,631 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its position in shares of Hess by 76.4% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,532,132 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $227,273,000 after purchasing an additional 663,338 shares in the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.