Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) CEO Sells $13,729,733.20 in Stock

Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) CEO John B. Hess sold 92,894 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.80, for a total value of $13,729,733.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 229,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,914,927. The trade was a 28.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Hess Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of Hess stock opened at $148.65 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.26. The stock has a market cap of $45.80 billion, a PE ratio of 17.33 and a beta of 1.15. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $138.79 and a 200-day moving average of $142.69. Hess Co. has a 52-week low of $123.79 and a 52-week high of $163.98.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.96 billion. Hess had a net margin of 20.58% and a return on equity of 27.41%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.64 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Hess Co. will post 9.72 EPS for the current year.

Hess Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. This is a positive change from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.35%. Hess’s payout ratio is 23.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HES has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Hess from $171.00 to $151.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 27th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Hess in a research report on Monday, November 18th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Citigroup decreased their price target on Hess from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Hess from $173.00 to $167.00 in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Mizuho cut their price target on Hess from $210.00 to $194.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $163.30.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hess

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HES. Drive Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hess by 1.6% during the second quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,599 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $678,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC increased its holdings in Hess by 7.3% during the 2nd quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,074 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $158,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Hess by 16.9% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 540 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in Hess by 4.7% during the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,771 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $261,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.