Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) Shares Purchased by Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC

Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 36.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 64,100 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 17,077 shares during the period. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $8,526,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Hess during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in Hess in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hess in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hess during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its stake in Hess by 225.6% in the 4th 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. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Hess

In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the company’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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,384,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $379,879,364.70. This represents a 6.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 9.10% of the company’s stock.

Hess Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE HES opened at $129.86 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $142.10 and a 200-day moving average of $141.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.13. Hess Co. has a 12 month low of $123.79 and a 12 month high of $161.69. The company has a market cap of $40.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.43 and a beta of 0.88.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by ($0.14). Hess had a return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 21.27%. The company had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.95 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.16 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Hess Co. will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Scotiabank reduced their target price on Hess from $164.00 to $146.58 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. StockNews.com started coverage on Hess in a research report on Sunday, April 27th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Pickering Energy Partners upgraded Hess to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Hess from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hess presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price 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.