PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co Buys New Shares in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co bought a new position in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 9,095 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock, valued at approximately $1,210,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in Hess by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 2,154 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $287,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Hess by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 3,971 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $528,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Hess by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,809 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $241,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in Hess by 18.0% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 629 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $84,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Hess by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,384 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $450,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Hess from $151.00 to $147.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Hess from $193.00 to $191.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen started coverage on shares of Hess in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Hess from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $162.16.

Insider Transactions at Hess

In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 9.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hess Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of HES stock traded down $1.30 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $132.32. 3,570,806 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,795,061. The business has a 50 day moving average of $135.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $140.80. 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 Co. has a 52 week low of $123.79 and a 52 week high of $161.69. The company has a market capitalization of $40.93 billion, a PE ratio of 14.70 and a beta of 0.61.

Hess (NYSE:HES - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 21.27%. The company had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.16 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Hess Co. will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Hess's dividend payout ratio is 27.66%.

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.