Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New $31.23 Million Investment in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 234,764 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock, valued at approximately $31,225,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.08% of Hess at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Insider Activity at Hess

In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was 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 directly owns 2,384,679 shares in the company, valued at $379,879,364.70. The trade was a 6.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 9.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hess Stock Performance

NYSE:HES traded up $4.08 on Tuesday, hitting $130.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,430,960 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,889,834. Hess Co. has a one year low of $123.79 and a one year high of $163.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.49 and a beta of 0.88. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $144.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $142.13. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 21.27%. Research analysts predict that Hess Co. will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

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

Hess 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.