Arizona State Retirement System Lowers Stock Position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Arizona State Retirement System cut its position in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 77,750 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 471 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Hess were worth $11,208,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its stake in Hess by 1,456.8% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 7,504 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,082,000 after buying an additional 7,022 shares during the period. Point72 Europe London LLP purchased a new position in Hess during the second quarter worth about $10,985,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its stake in Hess by 8.7% during the third quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 564,454 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $86,361,000 after buying an additional 45,246 shares during the period. Belpointe Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hess in the third quarter valued at approximately $222,000. Finally, BOKF NA boosted its stake in shares of Hess by 20.7% in the second quarter. BOKF NA now owns 34,301 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $4,663,000 after purchasing an additional 5,889 shares during the period. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HES has been the subject of several recent research reports. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Hess from $210.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 14th. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of Hess from $152.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Hess from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Hess in a report on Monday, April 1st. They issued a “sell” rating on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Hess from $169.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hess presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $176.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hess

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 73,885 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.87, for a total value of $10,777,604.95. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 138,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,234,794.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, COO Gregory P. Hill sold 56,925 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.35, for a total transaction of $8,330,973.75. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 78,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,457,302.45. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO John B. Hess sold 73,885 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.87, for a total transaction of $10,777,604.95. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 138,718 shares in the company, valued at $20,234,794.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 155,798 shares of company stock valued at $22,811,166. 9.93% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hess Stock Up 0.9 %

HES stock opened at $157.45 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. Hess Co. has a twelve month low of $124.27 and a twelve month high of $167.75. The company’s 50 day moving average is $147.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $146.84. The stock has a market cap of $48.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.99 and a beta of 1.27.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.20. Hess had a net margin of 12.98% and a return on equity of 17.00%. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.76 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.78 EPS. Hess’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Hess Co. will post 7.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Monday, March 18th were given a $0.4375 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 15th. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.11%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.89%.

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.