Mizuho Securities USA LLC Acquires 8,273 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 46.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 26,195 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after buying an additional 8,273 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $3,484,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. J.Safra Asset Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Hess during the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Hess in the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:HES opened at $156.59 on Monday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $48.28 billion, a PE ratio of 17.40 and a beta of 1.21. Hess Co. has a 12-month low of $123.79 and a 12-month high of $163.98. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $146.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $140.90.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.32. Hess had a return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 21.27%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Hess Co. will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.28%. Hess’s payout ratio is 22.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on HES. Citigroup increased their price objective on Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com began coverage on Hess in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Pickering Energy Partners raised Hess to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hess presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.60.

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.