Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Reduces Position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. reduced its position in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HESFree Report) by 1.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,676 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 188 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Hess were worth $1,553,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of HES. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new stake in Hess during the 4th quarter worth about $492,000. Breakwater Capital Group lifted its stake in Hess by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Breakwater Capital Group now owns 2,350 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $313,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC lifted its stake in Hess by 27.5% during the fourth quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC now owns 1,690 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 365 shares during the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Hess by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 2,692 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $358,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital increased its stake in Hess by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 3,906 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $556,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of HES stock opened at $144.80 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $141.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $139.51. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.62 billion, a PE ratio of 16.88 and a beta of 1.18. Hess Co. has a 52-week low of $123.79 and a 52-week high of $163.98.

Hess (NYSE:HESGet Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.96 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.64 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Hess Co. will post 9.49 EPS for the current year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.38%. Hess’s payout ratio is currently 23.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on HES shares. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Hess in a report on Tuesday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Citigroup upped their price objective 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. Susquehanna raised their price objective on Hess from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Hess from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hess has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.50.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on Hess

Insider Transactions at Hess

In other news, CEO John B. Hess sold 92,894 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.80, for a total transaction of $13,729,733.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 229,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,914,927. This represents a 28.82 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of Hess stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.91, for a total value of $851,460.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 27,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,914,019.71. This trade represents a 17.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 314,370 shares of company stock worth $45,856,309. Company insiders own 9.76% of the company’s stock.

About Hess

(Free Report)

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.

Further Reading

Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Hess (NYSE:HES)

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