Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Purchases New Shares in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 3,343 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $454,000.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in Hess by 59.8% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 262 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hess during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Eastern Bank purchased a new position in shares of Hess during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Coastline Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Hess during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in Hess in the 2nd quarter valued at $60,000. 88.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hess

In other Hess news, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of Hess stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.91, for a total value of $851,460.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 27,581 shares in the company, valued at $3,914,019.71. The trade was a 17.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO John B. Hess sold 92,894 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was 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 owns 229,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,914,927. This represents a 28.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 314,370 shares of company stock worth $45,856,309 in the last ninety days. 9.76% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hess Price Performance

NYSE:HES opened at $140.20 on Monday. Hess Co. has a one year low of $123.79 and a one year high of $163.98. The stock has a market cap of $43.20 billion, a PE ratio of 16.34 and a beta of 1.17. 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 50 day moving average price of $141.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $141.35.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.26. Hess had a return on equity of 27.41% and a net margin of 20.58%. The business had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.96 billion. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.64 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Hess Co. will post 9.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on HES. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Hess from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Hess from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on Hess from $210.00 to $194.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their target price on Hess from $157.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.50.

Hess Company 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.