Hess (NYSE:HES) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Hess (NYSE:HES) in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

HES has been the subject of several other reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Hess from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Hess from $157.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Hess from $192.00 to $173.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Hess from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of Hess from $151.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $166.00.

Hess Stock Performance

HES stock opened at $139.41 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The company has a market capitalization of $42.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.35 and a beta of 1.15. Hess has a 12 month low of $123.79 and a 12 month high of $167.75. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $135.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $145.48.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $3.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.24 billion. Hess had a net margin of 21.22% and a return on equity of 27.43%. Hess’s quarterly revenue was up 40.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.65 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Hess will post 10.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hess Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This is a positive change from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.63%.

Institutional Trading of Hess

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Hess in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Hess during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Hess during the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Hess by 47.6% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 273 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the period. Finally, Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in Hess during the 1st quarter worth approximately $52,000. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.