Zacks Research Weighs in on Hess’ FY2024 Earnings (NYSE:HES)

Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) – Zacks Research boosted their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of Hess in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, January 14th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the oil and gas producer will post earnings of $9.55 per share for the year, up from their prior estimate of $9.53. The consensus estimate for Hess’ current full-year earnings is $9.51 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Hess’ Q4 2024 earnings at $1.63 EPS and Q3 2025 earnings at $1.70 EPS.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.88 by $0.26. Hess had a return on equity of 27.41% and a net margin of 20.58%. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.96 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.64 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Hess from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Hess from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on Hess in a research note on Monday, January 13th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.50.

Hess Stock Performance

Hess stock opened at $151.33 on Friday. Hess has a 1-year low of $123.79 and a 1-year high of $163.98. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.63 billion, a PE ratio of 17.64 and a beta of 1.18. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $140.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $139.57.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.32%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.31%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.91, for a total value of $851,460.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 27,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,914,019.71. This represents a 17.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO John B. Hess sold 90,476 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.47, for a total value of $12,890,115.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 223,147 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,791,753.09. This represents a 28.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 314,370 shares of company stock valued at $45,856,309. Corporate insiders own 9.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hess

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. True North Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Hess in the fourth quarter worth about $216,000. Wesbanco Bank Inc. bought a new stake in Hess in the fourth quarter worth $323,000. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hess by 441.8% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 54,831 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $7,293,000 after purchasing an additional 44,710 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hess by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 2,203 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $293,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Finally, Ellsworth Advisors LLC grew its position in Hess by 13.4% in the 4th quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC now owns 5,029 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $669,000 after acquiring an additional 593 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

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.