Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Increases Stock Position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 16.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,927 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 986 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $921,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in Hess in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Hess in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in Hess in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Hess in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. lifted its position in Hess by 225.6% in the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 293 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hess Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Hess stock opened at $136.50 on Tuesday. Hess Co. has a 52-week low of $123.79 and a 52-week high of $161.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $132.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $140.23. The firm has a market cap of $42.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.17 and a beta of 0.62.

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

Hess Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.47%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.66%.

Insider Transactions at Hess

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the company’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 directly owns 2,384,679 shares in the company, valued at approximately $379,879,364.70. This represents a 6.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders have sold a total of 650,000 shares of company stock worth $91,845,500 over the last ninety days. 9.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on HES shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Hess to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Hess from $164.00 to $146.58 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Hess from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Hess from $151.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $162.16.

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.