Hess (NYSE:HES) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.32 EPS

Hess (NYSE:HES) issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.32, Zacks reports. Hess had a net margin of 20.58% and a return on equity of 27.41%.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of HES opened at $145.23 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. Hess has a 12 month low of $123.79 and a 12 month high of $163.98. The company’s fifty day moving average is $140.98 and its 200-day moving average is $139.39. The firm has a market cap of $44.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.88 and a beta of 1.18.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HES has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Hess from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Citigroup raised their price objective 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. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Hess in a report on Wednesday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Pickering Energy Partners upgraded shares of Hess to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on Hess from $157.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Hess presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.50.

Insider Activity at Hess

In other news, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.91, for a total value of $851,460.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 27,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,914,019.71. The trade was a 17.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John B. Hess sold 125,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.08, for a total transaction of $18,385,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 217,894 shares in the company, valued at $32,047,849.52. The trade was a 36.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 314,370 shares of company stock valued at $45,856,309. Insiders own 9.76% of the company’s stock.

Hess Company Profile

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.