PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Sells 1,446 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 2.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 71,836 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 1,446 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Hess were worth $9,755,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of HES. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Hess in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Hess by 59.8% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 262 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hess by 47.6% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 273 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank purchased a new position in shares of Hess in the 3rd quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, Coastline Trust Co bought a new position in Hess in the 3rd quarter worth about $55,000. Institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hess news, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.91, for a total transaction of $851,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 27,581 shares in the company, valued at $3,914,019.71. This trade represents a 17.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO John B. Hess sold 92,894 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.80, for a total value of $13,729,733.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 229,465 shares in the company, valued at $33,914,927. This trade represents a 28.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 314,370 shares of company stock worth $45,856,309. 9.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hess Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:HES opened at $148.65 on Friday. Hess Co. has a 12-month low of $123.79 and a 12-month high of $163.98. The company has a market cap of $45.80 billion, a PE ratio of 17.33 and a beta of 1.15. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $138.79 and a 200 day moving average of $142.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.96 billion. Hess had a net margin of 20.58% and a return on equity of 27.41%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.64 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Hess Co. will post 9.72 EPS for the current year.

Hess Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.35%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is 23.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on HES. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Hess from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Wolfe Research raised Hess from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Hess from $157.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Hess in a report on Monday, November 18th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Hess from $173.00 to $167.00 in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $163.30.

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.