StockNews.com Begins Coverage on Hess (NYSE:HES)

Stock analysts at StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Hess (NYSE:HES) in a report issued on Friday. The brokerage set a “sell” rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Hess from $156.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Hess from $172.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price objective on Hess from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $177.42.

Hess Trading Up 0.2 %

HES opened at $158.86 on Friday. Hess has a 52 week low of $124.27 and a 52 week high of $167.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $152.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $147.31. The firm has a market cap of $48.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.33 and a beta of 1.24.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas producer reported $3.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $1.43. The firm had revenue of $3.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.98 billion. Hess had a return on equity of 22.73% and a net margin of 17.41%. Hess’s revenue was up 36.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.13 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Hess will post 9.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hess

In other news, EVP Timothy B. Goodell sold 2,701 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total transaction of $390,348.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 162,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,433,050.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Hess news, EVP Timothy B. Goodell sold 2,701 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total transaction of $390,348.52. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 162,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,433,050.88. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Andrew P. Slentz sold 1,062 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total transaction of $153,480.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 50,215 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,257,071.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 155,798 shares of company stock worth $22,811,166 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 9.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hess

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Hess in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hess during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hess during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Hess in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

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.