Choreo LLC Sells 456 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Choreo LLC decreased its position in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 10.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,988 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 456 shares during the period. Choreo LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $524,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of HES. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Hess by 40.2% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 22,806 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $2,978,000 after purchasing an additional 6,542 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its position in shares of Hess by 14.5% in the fourth quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 300,267 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $39,939,000 after buying an additional 37,951 shares in the last quarter. Paragon Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hess in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,513,000. Mather Group LLC. boosted its stake in shares of Hess by 56.4% in the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 577 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $77,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the period. Finally, Calamos Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Hess by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC now owns 86,420 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $11,495,000 after buying an additional 776 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on HES shares. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Hess in a report on Thursday, February 6th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. UBS Group boosted their price target on Hess from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Pickering Energy Partners upgraded shares of Hess to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hess currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.50.

Hess Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HES opened at $146.91 on Wednesday. Hess Co. has a one year low of $123.79 and a one year high of $163.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The company has a market cap of $45.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.32 and a beta of 1.17. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $140.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $138.88.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.32. Hess had a return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 21.27%. Research analysts predict that Hess Co. will post 7.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. Hess’s payout ratio is 22.22%.

Insider Transactions at Hess

In related news, 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 229,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,914,927. This trade represents a 28.82 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 9.76% of the company’s stock.

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.