Primecap Management Co. CA Sells 146,649 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Primecap Management Co. CA decreased its stake in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,768,296 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 146,649 shares during the quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA owned about 2.52% of Hess worth $1,033,261,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC lifted its position in Hess by 3.5% during 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 last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in Hess by 1.9% during 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 last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Hess by 2.4% during the third quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,266 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $444,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Hess by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,682 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $224,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Howard Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Hess by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,809 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $241,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Trading Up 1.5 %

HES stock opened at $150.43 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $46.38 billion, a PE ratio of 16.71 and a beta of 1.21. Hess Co. has a 12 month low of $123.79 and a 12 month high of $163.98. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $145.47 and its 200 day moving average is $140.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.32. Hess had a net margin of 21.27% and a return on equity of 26.32%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Hess Co. will post 8.08 EPS for the current year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HES has been the subject of several research reports. Pickering Energy Partners upgraded shares of Hess to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Hess in a research note on Tuesday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.60.

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.