Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Has $1.39 Million Position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund lessened its holdings in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 7.8% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 9,084 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 765 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Hess were worth $1,387,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in shares of Hess by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 129,977 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $18,737,000 after acquiring an additional 8,439 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its position in Hess by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 123,339 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $17,781,000 after purchasing an additional 1,210 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its position in Hess by 14.4% during the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 100,330 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $14,464,000 after purchasing an additional 12,649 shares during the period. Alpine Associates Management Inc. bought a new stake in Hess during the fourth quarter worth about $237,100,000. Finally, Arvest Investments Inc. bought a new stake in Hess during the fourth quarter worth about $1,407,000. Institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of HES stock traded down $2.80 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $147.45. 323,820 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,363,238. The firm has a market cap of $45.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.56 and a beta of 1.16. Hess Co. has a fifty-two week low of $131.61 and a fifty-two week high of $167.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.23. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $148.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $149.53.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The oil and gas producer reported $3.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $1.43. Hess had a return on equity of 22.73% and a net margin of 17.41%. The company had revenue of $3.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.98 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.13 EPS. Hess’s quarterly revenue was up 36.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Hess Co. will post 11.08 EPS for the current year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were issued a $0.4375 dividend. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.19%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HES has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Hess from $172.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of Hess from $167.00 to $166.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Scotiabank dropped their target price on shares of Hess from $165.00 to $157.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Hess from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $178.58.

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.