Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) Shares Sold by Rhumbline Advisers

Rhumbline Advisers lessened its stake in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES - Free Report) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 535,692 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 9,788 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers owned 0.17% of Hess worth $71,252,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Hess by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,266 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $444,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Hess by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,682 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Hess by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,577 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $214,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its position in Hess by 59.8% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 262 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Hess by 6.3% in the third quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,673 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $231,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on HES. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Hess in a report on Friday, February 14th. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Hess from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Citigroup upped their target price on Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Pickering Energy Partners raised Hess to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $170.60.

Hess Stock Performance

HES stock traded up $1.92 during trading on Thursday, hitting $151.19. 1,023,738 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,953,813. 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 $46.58 billion, a PE ratio of 16.80 and a beta of 1.17. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $140.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $138.92. Hess Co. has a 1 year low of $123.79 and a 1 year high of $163.98.

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

Hess Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.32%. Hess's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hess

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 92,894 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $33,914,927. This represents a 28.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 9.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.