Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Lowers Position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. trimmed its holdings in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES - Free Report) by 73.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,162 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 14,608 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.'s holdings in Hess were worth $687,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. J.Safra Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in Hess in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Groupama Asset Managment increased its holdings 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 buying an additional 4,186 shares in the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Hess in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hess during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Institutional investors own 88.51% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of Hess stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.30, for a total value of $27,877,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,384,679 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $379,879,364.70. This trade represents a 6.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 9.76% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Pickering Energy Partners upgraded Hess to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Hess from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Hess in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $170.60.

Hess Trading Up 1.0 %

HES stock traded up $1.59 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $161.32. The stock had a trading volume of 1,566,477 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,859,628. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $148.21 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $142.46. Hess Co. has a 1-year low of $123.79 and a 1-year high of $163.98. The firm has a market cap of $49.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.92 and a beta of 1.21.

Hess (NYSE:HES - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 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, sell-side analysts predict that Hess Co. will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. Hess's payout ratio is 22.22%.

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.