Sanford C. Bernstein Upgrades Hess (NYSE:HES) to “Outperform”

Hess (NYSE:HES) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. The firm presently has a $172.00 price target on the oil and gas producer’s stock, up from their prior price target of $166.00. Sanford C. Bernstein’s target price points to a potential upside of 10.65% from the company’s current price.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Hess from $172.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Scotiabank cut their price target 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. Mizuho upped their price objective on Hess from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Citigroup increased their price target on Hess from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, Susquehanna increased their price objective on Hess from $164.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 16th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hess has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $178.67.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of HES stock opened at $155.44 on Wednesday. Hess has a 1 year low of $131.61 and a 1 year high of $167.75. The stock has a market cap of $47.89 billion, a PE ratio of 23.80 and a beta of 1.16. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $149.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $149.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.23.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas producer reported $3.16 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $1.43. The business had revenue of $3.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.98 billion. Hess had a return on equity of 22.73% and a net margin of 17.41%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 36.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.13 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Hess will post 10.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Hess

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Hess during the first quarter worth $25,000. Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hess during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Hess in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Hess in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Cape Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in Hess in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. 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.