13,400 Shares in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) Purchased by Generali Investments CEE investicni spolecnost a.s.

Generali Investments CEE investicni spolecnost a.s. acquired a new stake in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 13,400 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,782,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hess by 12.5% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,064 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $144,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in shares of Hess by 134.6% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 6,143 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $834,000 after buying an additional 3,524 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Hess by 16.2% during the third quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,915 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $260,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares during the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hess by 9.8% during the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,026 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $275,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the period. Finally, M&G PLC boosted its holdings in Hess by 4.6% in the third quarter. M&G PLC now owns 41,090 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $5,588,000 after acquiring an additional 1,812 shares during the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of HES stock opened at $147.73 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $45.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.41 and a beta of 1.21. Hess Co. has a 52 week low of $123.79 and a 52 week high of $163.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.12. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $143.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $139.92.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its earnings results 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 net margin of 21.27% and a return on equity of 26.32%. On average, analysts expect that Hess Co. will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.35%. Hess’s payout ratio is presently 22.22%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Hess in a report on Sunday, March 2nd. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Pickering Energy Partners upgraded Hess to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company 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.