Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) Stock Holdings Boosted by Bison Wealth LLC

Bison Wealth LLC boosted its position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 3.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,252 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the quarter. Bison Wealth LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $566,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter valued at $3,117,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Hess during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,274,000. Czech National Bank raised its position in shares of Hess by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 59,927 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $7,971,000 after buying an additional 3,625 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hess by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,838,079 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $244,483,000 after acquiring an additional 82,703 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Hess by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 43,085 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $5,731,000 after acquiring an additional 1,861 shares in the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Hess

In other news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.30, for a total transaction of $27,877,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,384,679 shares in the company, valued at approximately $379,879,364.70. The trade was a 6.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 9.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HES opened at $129.14 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $142.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $141.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.12. Hess Co. has a 52 week low of $123.79 and a 52 week high of $161.69. The firm has a market cap of $39.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.35 and a beta of 0.88.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. Hess had a return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 21.27%. Hess’s quarterly revenue was down 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.16 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Hess Co. will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.22%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on HES. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Hess from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Susquehanna dropped their price target on Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Pickering Energy Partners raised Hess to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Scotiabank reduced their target price on Hess from $164.00 to $146.58 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on Hess in a research note on Sunday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.46.

Hess Profile

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.