Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 2,257 Shares of Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES)

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its position in Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES - Free Report) by 0.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 321,114 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 2,257 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.10% of Hess worth $51,292,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HES. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. raised its position in Hess by 106.2% in the first quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 200 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hess in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hess in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its stake in shares of Hess by 225.6% in 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 last quarter. Finally, Raiffeisen Bank International AG bought a new stake in shares of Hess in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Hess from $163.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Hess from $147.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target 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. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $162.86.

Insider Activity at Hess

In other news, CEO John B. Hess sold 250,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The stock was 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 owned 1,734,679 shares in the company, valued at $235,933,690.79. The trade was a 12.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 9.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hess Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of HES stock opened at $142.42 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $44.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.70 and a beta of 0.62. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $135.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $140.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.08. Hess Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $123.79 and a fifty-two week high of $161.69.

Hess (NYSE:HES - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. Hess had a net margin of 17.65% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The company's revenue was down 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.16 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Hess Corporation will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

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

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.

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