AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES - Free Report) by 24.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 60,404 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after purchasing an additional 11,817 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC's holdings in Hess were worth $7,990,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. J.Safra Asset Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Hess in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Hess in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in Hess in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hess during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its stake in shares of Hess by 225.6% during the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 293 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the period. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several research firms recently weighed in on HES. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Scotiabank reduced their target price on shares of Hess from $164.00 to $146.58 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Hess from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on Hess in a report on Monday, May 5th. They set a "hold" rating for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $164.46.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Hess
Insider Buying and Selling
In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 2,384,679 shares in the company, valued at approximately $379,879,364.70. This trade represents a 6.84% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 9.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Hess Price Performance
HES stock traded up $2.93 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $135.30. The company had a trading volume of 316,429 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,815,544. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $140.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $141.46. The company has a market capitalization of $41.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.02 and a beta of 0.61. Hess Co. has a 1 year low of $123.79 and a 1 year high of $161.69. 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 (NYSE:HES - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.95 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.95 billion. Hess had a net margin of 21.27% and a return on equity of 26.32%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.16 EPS. On average, research 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. 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 1.48%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Hess's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.66%.
About Hess
(
Free Report)
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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