Stifel Financial Corp Purchases 12,274 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 31.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 51,635 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,274 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp’s holdings in Hess were worth $6,868,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. J.Safra Asset Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Hess during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new stake in Hess during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Hess in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its stake in shares of Hess by 225.6% during the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 293 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hess

In other news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.30, for a total transaction of $27,877,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,384,679 shares in the company, valued at $379,879,364.70. The trade was a 6.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 9.10% of the company’s stock.

Hess Stock Performance

NYSE HES opened at $133.84 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $41.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.87 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company’s 50 day moving average is $143.23 and its 200-day moving average is $141.96. Hess Co. has a 12-month low of $123.79 and a 12-month high of $163.98.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 earnings per share (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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Hess Co. will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on HES shares. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on Hess from $164.00 to $146.58 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. StockNews.com started coverage on Hess in a research note on Sunday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Pickering Energy Partners raised Hess to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Hess from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $164.46.

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.