Czech National Bank Increases Stake in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Czech National Bank raised its stake in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES - Free Report) by 5.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 63,481 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after buying an additional 3,554 shares during the period. Czech National Bank's holdings in Hess were worth $10,140,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of HES. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hess by 44.4% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,760 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $239,000 after acquiring an additional 541 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its position in Hess by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 14,348 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $1,908,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC grew its holdings in Hess by 8.8% during the fourth quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 4,435 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $590,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the period. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in Hess by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 9,509 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,265,000 after buying an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Calamos Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Hess by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC now owns 86,420 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $11,495,000 after buying an additional 776 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.51% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. 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 report on Friday, April 11th. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Hess from $193.00 to $191.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. UBS Group cut their price target on Hess from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen initiated coverage on Hess in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hess presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $162.16.

Hess Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HES traded down $0.47 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $132.98. The stock had a trading volume of 2,163,562 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,793,489. The business's 50 day moving average price is $133.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $140.59. Hess Co. has a 1 year low of $123.79 and a 1 year high of $161.69. The company has a market cap of $41.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.78 and a beta of 0.62. 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 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 firm had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.95 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.16 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Hess Co. will post 8.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.50%. Hess's payout ratio is currently 27.66%.

Insider Transactions at Hess

In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 9.10% of the company's stock.

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.