Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the eleven ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $170.50.

HES has been the topic of several analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Hess in a research report on Tuesday. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Hess from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Hess from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $150.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Hess from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th.

Insider Transactions at Hess

In other news, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,914,019.71. This represents a 17.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO John B. Hess sold 125,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.08, for a total transaction of $18,385,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 217,894 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,047,849.52. The trade was a 36.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 314,370 shares of company stock valued at $45,856,309. 9.76% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hess

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Groupama Asset Managment grew its stake in shares of Hess by 22.7% during the third quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 22,606 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 4,186 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in Hess by 59.8% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 262 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Hess in the third quarter valued at $37,000. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in Hess in the third quarter valued at $48,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC boosted its stake in Hess by 157.2% in the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 355 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company's stock.

Hess Price Performance

Shares of Hess stock traded down $0.79 on Thursday, hitting $144.80. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,986,143 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,109,394. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.26. Hess has a 1 year low of $123.79 and a 1 year high of $163.98. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $141.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $139.51. The company has a market capitalization of $44.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.88 and a beta of 1.18.

Hess (NYSE:HES - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.88 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.96 billion. Hess had a return on equity of 27.41% and a net margin of 20.58%. Hess's revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.64 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hess will post 9.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 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 1.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. Hess's dividend payout ratio is currently 23.31%.

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.