Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES) Shares Acquired by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its stake in Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES) by 58.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 66,101 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,273 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Hess were worth $10,558,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hess by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 2,154 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $287,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hess by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 3,971 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $528,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems increased its holdings in shares of Hess by 0.4% in the first quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems now owns 19,073 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $3,047,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, Stonegate Investment Group LLC grew its holdings in Hess by 4.1% during the first quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 2,444 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $390,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 225,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.18, for a total transaction of $29,965,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,984,679 shares in the company, valued at approximately $264,319,549.22. This represents a 10.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 9.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HES has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised Hess from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Hess from $163.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on Hess from $193.00 to $191.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Hess from $151.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Hess from $193.00 to $184.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hess currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $162.26.

Hess Stock Down 0.8%

HES opened at $139.06 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.08. Hess Corporation has a one year low of $123.79 and a one year high of $161.69. The business’s fifty day moving average is $134.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $139.92. The company has a market cap of $43.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.23 and a beta of 0.62.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.14). Hess had a net margin of 17.65% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The company had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.16 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Hess Corporation will post 8.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.66%.

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.