Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) have earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the thirteen analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $171.31.

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Hess from $173.00 to $167.00 in a report on Friday, September 13th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Hess in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Hess from $165.00 to $157.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 12th. BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of Hess to an “overweight” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $175.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on Hess in a research report on Friday, June 28th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock.

Hess Stock Performance

Hess stock opened at $133.50 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $138.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $147.08. Hess has a 52 week low of $123.79 and a 52 week high of $167.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.44 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.48 by $0.14. Hess had a net margin of 21.22% and a return on equity of 27.43%. The company had revenue of $3.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.24 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.65 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 40.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Hess will post 11.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Hess Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.50%. This is an increase from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is 30.63%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hess

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HES. Manchester Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Hess by 1.4% in the first quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 5,102 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $779,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. Drive Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Hess by 1.6% during the second quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,599 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $678,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC grew its holdings in Hess by 7.3% in the 2nd quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,074 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $158,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its position in Hess by 17.9% in the 1st quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 507 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Hess by 16.9% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 540 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.