Oak Thistle LLC Buys 2,625 Shares of Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES)

Oak Thistle LLC boosted its stake in Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES - Free Report) by 71.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,322 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after purchasing an additional 2,625 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC's holdings in Hess were worth $1,010,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Hess by 3.1% during the first quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 81,381 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $12,999,000 after acquiring an additional 2,420 shares during the period. Summit Trail Advisors LLC bought a new position in Hess in the 1st quarter worth $373,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its holdings in Hess by 12.3% in the 1st quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 56,483 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $9,022,000 after acquiring an additional 6,208 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC raised its holdings in Hess by 14.9% in the 1st quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 22,092 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $3,529,000 after acquiring an additional 2,857 shares during the period. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Hess by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 113,287 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $18,095,000 after acquiring an additional 5,528 shares during the period. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO John B. Hess sold 250,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.01, for a total value of $34,002,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,734,679 shares in the company, valued at $235,933,690.79. This represents a 12.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 9.10% of the company's stock.

Hess Price Performance

HES stock traded up $11.34 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $160.31. The stock had a trading volume of 104,703 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,867,605. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Hess Corporation has a 52 week low of $123.79 and a 52 week high of $161.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.17 and a beta of 0.62. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $142.37 and a 200 day simple moving average of $142.29.

Hess (NYSE:HES - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.14). Hess had a net margin of 17.65% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.16 earnings per share. Hess's quarterly revenue was down 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Hess Corporation will post 8.08 EPS for the current year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.25%. Hess's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.66%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on HES. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Hess from $193.00 to $184.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Hess from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Hess from $163.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Hess from $147.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hess presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $162.78.

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.