SG Americas Securities LLC Sells 42,553 Shares of Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES)

SG Americas Securities LLC cut its holdings in shares of Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES - Free Report) by 77.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 12,278 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 42,553 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC's holdings in Hess were worth $1,961,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in Hess during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hess during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hess during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.51% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 250,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.01, for a total value of $34,002,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders sold 650,000 shares of company stock valued at $91,845,500. Company insiders own 9.10% of the company's stock.

Hess Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of Hess stock traded up $2.55 on Tuesday, reaching $144.30. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,114,852 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,799,956. The company has a market capitalization of $44.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.02 and a beta of 0.62. 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 Corporation has a 52 week low of $123.79 and a 52 week high of $161.69. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $132.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $140.04.

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

Hess Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Hess's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.66%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on HES. Wall Street Zen raised Hess from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Susquehanna reduced their price target on Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Hess from $151.00 to $147.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Hess from $193.00 to $191.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Hess from $163.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Six 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, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $163.16.

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.