Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) CEO Sells $12,890,115.72 in Stock

Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) CEO John B. Hess sold 90,476 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.47, for a total transaction of $12,890,115.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 223,147 shares in the company, valued at $31,791,753.09. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Hess Stock Down 0.4 %

Hess stock opened at $142.18 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $135.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $143.67. Hess Co. has a fifty-two week low of $123.79 and a fifty-two week high of $163.98. The firm has a market cap of $43.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.57 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.14.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.26. Hess had a net margin of 20.58% and a return on equity of 27.41%. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.96 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.64 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Hess Co. will post 9.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Hess Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. This is a boost from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.31%.

Institutional Trading of Hess

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. acquired a new stake in Hess during the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Covestor Ltd increased its position in Hess by 59.8% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 262 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Hess by 47.6% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 273 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in Hess during the 3rd quarter valued at about $48,000. Finally, Coastline Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Hess in the 3rd quarter valued at about $55,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on HES. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of Hess from $173.00 to $167.00 in a report on Friday, September 13th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Hess from $210.00 to $194.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Hess from $171.00 to $151.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 27th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Hess in a research note on Sunday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Hess from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $163.30.

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.