Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Increases Position in Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES - Free Report) by 20.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,382 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after acquiring an additional 4,576 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Hess were worth $4,339,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its holdings in Hess by 58.0% in the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 66,101 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $10,558,000 after buying an additional 24,273 shares during the last quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Hess by 10.9% in the first quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,443 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $390,000 after buying an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Hess by 3.2% in the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,111 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $657,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Hess by 175.4% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,531 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $245,000 after buying an additional 975 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in Hess by 37.6% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 7,123 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,138,000 after buying an additional 1,946 shares during the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 250,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.01, for a total transaction of $34,002,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,734,679 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $235,933,690.79. This represents a 12.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 9.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on HES shares. Susquehanna decreased 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. Piper Sandler lifted 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. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Hess from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Hess from $193.00 to $184.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price objective 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. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $162.86.

Hess Stock Performance

HES stock traded down $1.11 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $142.42. 696,543 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,809,781. Hess Corporation has a 52-week low of $123.79 and a 52-week high of $161.69. The stock has a market cap of $44.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.70 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The stock's 50-day moving average is $135.88 and its 200 day moving average is $140.02.

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

Hess Announces Dividend

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