Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) Shares Sold by Yaupon Capital Management LP

Yaupon Capital Management LP lessened its position in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES - Free Report) by 8.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 270,228 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 24,410 shares during the quarter. Hess makes up about 1.5% of Yaupon Capital Management LP's holdings, making the stock its 13th largest position. Yaupon Capital Management LP owned about 0.09% of Hess worth $35,943,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in HES. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Hess by 31.2% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 51,635 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $6,868,000 after purchasing an additional 12,274 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in shares of Hess by 29.1% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 10,726 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,427,000 after purchasing an additional 2,418 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Hess by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 81,168 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $10,796,000 after buying an additional 1,023 shares during the last quarter. Natixis grew its holdings in Hess by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Natixis now owns 131,582 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $17,502,000 after buying an additional 4,276 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norinchukin Bank The increased its position in Hess by 18.7% during the fourth quarter. Norinchukin Bank The now owns 15,159 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $2,016,000 after buying an additional 2,391 shares in the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HES has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Pickering Energy Partners raised Hess to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Hess in a research note on Saturday, April 19th. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Hess from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Susquehanna reduced their target price on Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their price target on Hess from $164.00 to $146.58 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hess presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $164.46.

Insider Activity at Hess

In other news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of Hess stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,384,679 shares in the company, valued at $379,879,364.70. This trade represents a 6.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 9.10% of the company's stock.

Hess Trading Up 0.0 %

NYSE HES traded up $0.05 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $132.43. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,097,230 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,880,650. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.71 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.13. Hess Co. has a 52-week low of $123.79 and a 52-week high of $163.98. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $143.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $142.00.

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

Hess Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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.