Mizuho Securities USA LLC Buys 62,966 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 295.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 84,277 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 62,966 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $11,445,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Hess by 34.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,835,486 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $418,291,000 after acquiring an additional 726,631 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in Hess by 76.4% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,532,132 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $227,273,000 after purchasing an additional 663,338 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in Hess by 64.3% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,449,969 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $218,220,000 after buying an additional 567,550 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Hess by 45.6% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,794,087 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $264,664,000 after buying an additional 561,832 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sculptor Capital LP grew its position in shares of Hess by 188.7% during the 2nd quarter. Sculptor Capital LP now owns 765,542 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $112,933,000 after buying an additional 500,342 shares during the period. 88.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hess Stock Performance

NYSE HES opened at $145.64 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $136.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $142.97. Hess Co. has a 1 year low of $123.79 and a 1 year high of $163.98. The firm has a market cap of $44.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.97 and a beta of 1.15.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.88 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.96 billion. Hess had a net margin of 20.58% and a return on equity of 27.41%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.64 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Hess Co. will post 9.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hess Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.37%. This is a boost from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Hess’s payout ratio is currently 23.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Hess from $171.00 to $151.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Susquehanna increased their price objective 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 decreased their target price on Hess from $210.00 to $194.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Hess from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Hess from $157.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $163.30.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hess

In other Hess news, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.91, for a total transaction of $851,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 27,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,914,019.71. This represents a 17.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO John B. Hess sold 90,476 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.47, for a total value of $12,890,115.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 223,147 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,791,753.09. The trade was a 28.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 9.76% 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.