Hess (NYSE:HES) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at StockNews.com

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

HES has been the subject of several other reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $151.00 to $193.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Pickering Energy Partners upgraded Hess to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. UBS Group boosted their target price on Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.60.

Hess Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of Hess stock opened at $149.04 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $45.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.56 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.13. Hess has a 52-week low of $123.79 and a 52-week high of $163.98. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $142.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $139.65.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.32. Hess had a return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 21.27%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Hess will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC increased its position in Hess by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 2,154 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $287,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in Hess by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 3,971 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $528,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Hess by 2.4% during the third quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,266 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $444,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Hess by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,682 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $224,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Howard Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Hess by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,809 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $241,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. 88.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.