Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) Shares Acquired by Assetmark Inc.

Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 6.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,741 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,098 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc.’s holdings in Hess were worth $2,360,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of Hess by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 2,154 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Hess by 2.4% during the third quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,266 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $444,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Hess by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,682 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hess by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,809 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $241,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of Hess by 18.0% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 629 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $84,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HES opened at $147.73 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $143.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $139.94. Hess Co. has a one year low of $123.79 and a one year 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 stock has a market capitalization of $45.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.41 and a beta of 1.21.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 predict that Hess Co. will post 8.08 EPS for the current year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued 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 1.35%. Hess’s payout ratio is 22.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Pickering Energy Partners upgraded shares of Hess to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Hess in a research note on Monday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.