Caxton Associates LP Lowers Position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Caxton Associates LP decreased its stake in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES - Free Report) by 8.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 236,199 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 22,686 shares during the period. Hess accounts for about 1.0% of Caxton Associates LP's portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Caxton Associates LP owned 0.08% of Hess worth $31,417,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. J.Safra Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in Hess during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hess in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new stake in Hess during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Hess in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its stake 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 during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hess

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,384,679 shares in the company, valued at approximately $379,879,364.70. This represents a 6.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 9.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HES has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Scotiabank reduced their target price on Hess from $164.00 to $146.58 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Hess in a report on Monday. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on Hess from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $164.46.

Hess Stock Up 0.1 %

HES stock traded up $0.18 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $129.05. 842,370 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,826,723. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $140.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $141.52. The company has a market capitalization of $39.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.34 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.12. Hess Co. has a 12 month low of $123.79 and a 12 month high of $161.69.

Hess (NYSE:HES - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.14). Hess had a net margin of 21.27% and a return on equity of 26.32%. The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.16 earnings per share. Hess's revenue was down 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Hess Co. will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.55%. Hess's payout ratio is currently 27.66%.

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.