Northern Trust Corp Purchases 214,704 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES - Free Report) by 8.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,799,020 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after acquiring an additional 214,704 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned about 0.91% of Hess worth $372,298,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of HES. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hess by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 2,154 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $287,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hess by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 3,971 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $528,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hess by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,682 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Hess by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,809 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $241,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in shares of Hess by 18.0% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 629 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hess Price Performance

Shares of HES traded up $2.54 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $132.33. 1,729,571 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,857,894. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The business has a 50-day moving average of $141.81 and a 200 day moving average of $141.71. Hess Co. has a one year low of $123.79 and a one year high of $161.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.70 and a beta of 0.88.

Hess (NYSE:HES - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. Hess had a net margin of 21.27% and a return on equity of 26.32%. Hess's revenue was down 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.16 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Hess Co. will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.51%. Hess's payout ratio is presently 22.22%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.30, for a total value of $27,877,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,384,679 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $379,879,364.70. The trade was a 6.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 9.10% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HES has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Scotiabank dropped 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 note on Friday, April 11th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Hess in a research report on Sunday, April 27th. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Pickering Energy Partners raised Hess to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on Hess from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $164.46.

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.