International Assets Investment Management LLC Buys 130,138 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 14,316.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 131,047 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after buying an additional 130,138 shares during the quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $177,960,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Greenleaf Trust raised its position in Hess by 18.4% in the 3rd quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 3,739 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $508,000 after purchasing an additional 580 shares during the last quarter. GAM Holding AG bought a new position in Hess in the 3rd quarter valued at $408,000. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its position in Hess by 21.5% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 15,126 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,054,000 after purchasing an additional 2,673 shares during the last quarter. Pictet North America Advisors SA bought a new position in Hess in the 3rd quarter valued at $10,854,000. Finally, Eastern Bank bought a new position in Hess in the 3rd quarter valued at $48,000. Institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Hess from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Mizuho cut their price objective on Hess from $210.00 to $194.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Hess from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Wolfe Research raised Hess from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised Hess from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $166.00 to $172.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $164.00.

Hess Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of Hess stock opened at $138.02 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. Hess Co. has a 12 month low of $123.79 and a 12 month high of $163.98. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $135.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $144.88. The stock has a market cap of $42.53 billion, a PE ratio of 21.14 and a beta of 1.15.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.48 by $0.14. Hess had a return on equity of 27.43% and a net margin of 21.22%. The business had revenue of $3.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.24 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.65 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 40.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Hess Co. will post 10.22 EPS for the current year.

Hess Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.45%. This is a positive change from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. Hess’s payout ratio is 30.63%.

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.