Hess (NYSE:HES) Coverage Initiated at StockNews.com

StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Hess (NYSE:HES) in a report issued on Saturday. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Hess from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $166.00 to $172.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Hess from $171.00 to $151.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Hess from $157.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Hess from $173.00 to $167.00 in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Hess from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $164.00.

Hess Stock Up 0.5 %

NYSE:HES opened at $139.35 on Friday. Hess has a 1-year low of $123.79 and a 1-year high of $163.98. The company has a market capitalization of $42.94 billion, a PE ratio of 16.24 and a beta of 1.15. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $135.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $143.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.14.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.26. Hess had a return on equity of 27.41% and a net margin of 20.58%. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.64 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Hess will post 9.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hess Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. This is an increase from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.44%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.31%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hess

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Aigen Investment Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Hess by 9.8% in the 3rd quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 10,745 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,459,000 after buying an additional 960 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Hess during the 3rd quarter valued at $496,000. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new position in Hess during the 3rd quarter worth $4,695,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Hess by 324.2% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 700 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $95,000 after buying an additional 535 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

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.