Colrain Capital LLC Makes New $11.46 Million Investment in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Colrain Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund bought 86,150 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $11,459,000. Hess accounts for approximately 11.2% of Colrain Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC raised its holdings in Hess by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 2,154 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Hess by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 3,971 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $528,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Hess by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,682 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Hess by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,809 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $241,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Hess by 18.0% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 629 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $84,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Hess

In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.30, for a total value of $27,877,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,384,679 shares in the company, valued at approximately $379,879,364.70. This trade represents a 6.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 9.76% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on HES shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Citigroup upped their target price on Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Hess in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. UBS Group increased their price objective on Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Pickering Energy Partners raised shares of Hess to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hess presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.60.

Hess Stock Down 0.4 %

HES opened at $158.48 on Monday. Hess Co. has a 12 month low of $123.79 and a 12 month high of $163.98. The business has a 50-day moving average of $147.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $142.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.61 and a beta of 1.21.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.32. Hess had a net margin of 21.27% and a return on equity of 26.32%. On average, research analysts expect that Hess Co. will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.26%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.22%.

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.