StockNews.com Begins Coverage on Hess (NYSE:HES)

StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Hess (NYSE:HES) in a note issued to investors on Sunday. The firm set a “hold” rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on HES. Wolfe Research raised shares of Hess from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Hess from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Hess from $157.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hess presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.50.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of HES stock opened at $136.39 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $139.59 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $139.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.90 and a beta of 1.17. Hess has a 12 month low of $123.79 and a 12 month high of $163.98.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of HES. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Hess by 12.0% in the second quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 13,153 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,940,000 after purchasing an additional 1,414 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its position in Hess by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 103,028 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $15,199,000 after buying an additional 4,520 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Hess by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 80,140 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $11,822,000 after buying an additional 810 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hess by 24.9% during the 2nd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 12,453 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,837,000 after acquiring an additional 2,484 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. increased its stake in shares of Hess by 18.6% in the second quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 18,425 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $2,718,000 after acquiring an additional 2,894 shares during the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.