Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) Shares Sold by Ardevora Asset Management LLP

Ardevora Asset Management LLP lessened its position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES - Free Report) by 45.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 41,258 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 34,955 shares during the period. Ardevora Asset Management LLP's holdings in Hess were worth $5,948,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Spire Wealth Management grew its stake in Hess by 30.7% in the third quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 319 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its stake in Hess by 24.0% in the first quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 403 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Ossiam grew its stake in Hess by 1.0% in the first quarter. Ossiam now owns 8,093 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $1,071,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Hess by 5.0% during the first quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,667 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $221,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its position in shares of Hess by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 12,726 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $1,805,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company's stock.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of HES traded up $2.57 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $154.35. The stock had a trading volume of 2,551,024 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,718,416. The firm has a market cap of $47.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.30 and a beta of 1.27. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $149.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $146.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.96. Hess Co. has a 52 week low of $124.27 and a 52 week high of $167.75.

Hess (NYSE:HES - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.20. Hess had a return on equity of 17.00% and a net margin of 12.98%. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.78 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Hess Co. will post 8.32 EPS for the current year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 18th were paid a $0.4375 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 15th. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.13%. Hess's dividend payout ratio is currently 38.89%.

Insider Transactions at Hess

In other news, SVP Andrew P. Slentz sold 1,062 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total value of $153,480.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 50,215 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,257,071.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Andrew P. Slentz sold 1,062 shares of Hess stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total value of $153,480.24. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 50,215 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,257,071.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Timothy B. Goodell sold 2,701 shares of Hess stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total value of $390,348.52. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 162,144 shares in the company, valued at $23,433,050.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 155,798 shares of company stock worth $22,811,166. 9.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Hess in a research report on Wednesday. They set a "sell" rating on the stock. Mizuho lifted their target price on Hess from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on Hess from $152.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Hess from $172.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $176.75.

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.