J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Has $1.68 Million Stock Position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG cut its stake in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES - Free Report) by 57.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,623 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 17,004 shares during the period. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG's holdings in Hess were worth $1,679,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. J.Safra Asset Management Corp bought a new position in Hess in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in Hess during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Hess in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. increased its position in shares of Hess by 225.6% during the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 293 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 203 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company's stock.

Hess Trading Up 3.2 %

Shares of Hess stock opened at $130.40 on Wednesday. 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 stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $144.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $142.13. Hess Co. has a 12-month low of $123.79 and a 12-month high of $163.98. The company has a market capitalization of $40.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.49 and a beta of 0.88.

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 net margin of 21.27% and a return on equity of 26.32%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hess Co. will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.53%. Hess's payout ratio is presently 22.22%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.30, for a total transaction of $27,877,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,384,679 shares in the company, valued at approximately $379,879,364.70. This trade represents a 6.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 9.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HES has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com began coverage on Hess in a report on Saturday. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Pickering Energy Partners upgraded shares of Hess to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Hess from $164.00 to $146.58 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on Hess from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hess presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $164.46.

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.

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