GAMMA Investing LLC Boosts Stock Position in Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES)

GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES) by 1.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,682 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after buying an additional 156 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $1,547,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Hess by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 33,141,244 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $4,408,117,000 after buying an additional 296,406 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its position in shares of Hess by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 11,438,985 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,521,499,000 after buying an additional 698,866 shares in the last quarter. HBK Investments L P raised its position in shares of Hess by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. HBK Investments L P now owns 7,237,911 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $962,715,000 after buying an additional 120,091 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Hess by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,695,533 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $888,240,000 after buying an additional 158,371 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Hess by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,844,257 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $511,325,000 after buying an additional 91,131 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE HES opened at $139.06 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.01 billion, a PE ratio of 19.23 and a beta of 0.62. Hess Corporation has a 1 year low of $123.79 and a 1 year high of $161.69. The business’s 50-day moving average is $134.75 and its 200 day moving average is $139.91.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.14). The business had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. Hess had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 17.65%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.16 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Hess Corporation will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.44%. Hess’s payout ratio is 27.66%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on HES. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Hess from $193.00 to $184.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Mizuho lowered their price target on Hess from $193.00 to $191.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Susquehanna lowered their price target on Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. UBS Group raised their price target on Hess from $163.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Hess from $151.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hess currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $162.26.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hess

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 250,000 shares of Hess stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.01, for a total transaction of $34,002,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,734,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $235,933,690.79. The trade was a 12.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 9.10% of the company’s stock.

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.