Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 11,080,000 shares, a growth of 24.6% from the May 15th total of 8,890,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,970,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.6 days. Currently, 3.9% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Hess Trading Up 0.6%

Hess stock traded up $0.85 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $144.51. 2,690,033 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,797,892. Hess has a fifty-two week low of $123.79 and a fifty-two week high of $161.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.99 and a beta of 0.62. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $133.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $140.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Hess (NYSE:HES - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). Hess had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 17.65%. The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.16 earnings per share. Hess's revenue for the quarter was down 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Hess will post 8.08 EPS for the current year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Hess's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 225,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.18, for a total transaction of $29,965,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,984,679 shares in the company, valued at approximately $264,319,549.22. This represents a 10.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 650,000 shares of company stock valued at $91,845,500. Corporate insiders own 9.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich purchased a new position in Hess during the first quarter worth about $25,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in Hess during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Hess by 106.2% during the first quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 200 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Capital Analysts LLC boosted its stake in Hess by 367.4% during the first quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 201 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 158 shares during the period. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Hess during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.51% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HES has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of Hess from $151.00 to $147.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Hess from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 14th. Scotiabank reduced their target price on shares of Hess from $164.00 to $146.58 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Hess from $193.00 to $191.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Hess has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $163.16.

Hess Company 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.