Teacher Retirement System of Texas Grows Holdings in Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its holdings in shares of Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES - Free Report) by 226.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 53,409 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after purchasing an additional 37,051 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in Hess were worth $8,531,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Hess by 106.2% during the first quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 200 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in Hess in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Hess during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Zions Bancorporation N.A. lifted its position in Hess by 225.6% during the fourth 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. Finally, Raiffeisen Bank International AG acquired a new stake in Hess during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company's stock.

Hess Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of HES stock traded down $1.11 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $142.42. 696,543 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,809,781. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $135.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $140.09. The stock has a market cap of $44.05 billion, a PE ratio of 19.70 and a beta of 0.62. Hess Corporation has a 12 month low of $123.79 and a 12 month high of $161.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Hess (NYSE:HES - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.14). Hess had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 17.65%. The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.16 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hess Corporation will post 8.08 EPS for the current year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. Hess's payout ratio is 27.66%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on HES. Scotiabank lowered their price objective 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. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Hess from $193.00 to $191.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Hess from $193.00 to $184.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Hess from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 14th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $162.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 250,000 shares of the firm'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 directly owned 1,734,679 shares in the company, valued at approximately $235,933,690.79. This trade represents a 12.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 9.10% of the company's stock.

Hess 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.