Partners in Financial Planning Makes New Investment in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Partners in Financial Planning acquired a new stake in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 4,496 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock, valued at approximately $598,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of HES. J.Safra Asset Management Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hess during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in Hess during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Hess in the third quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. 88.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 9.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on HES shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised Hess from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. 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. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Hess in a report on Thursday. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Pickering Energy Partners upgraded shares of Hess to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective 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. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $170.60.

Hess Stock Performance

HES traded down $14.49 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $133.89. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,995,195 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,873,512. Hess Co. has a twelve month low of $123.79 and a twelve month high of $163.98. The stock has a market cap of $41.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.88 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $148.37 and a 200 day simple moving average of $142.66. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

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

Hess Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.49%. Hess's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.