AlphaQuest LLC Raises Holdings in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

AlphaQuest LLC raised its position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 454.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,669 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,300 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $2,483,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Hess by 58.9% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,753,126 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $509,675,000 after acquiring an additional 1,391,311 shares during the last quarter. HBK Investments L P lifted its stake in Hess by 16.7% in the 3rd quarter. HBK Investments L P now owns 7,117,820 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $966,600,000 after purchasing an additional 1,017,720 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Hess by 46.3% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,930,509 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $389,787,000 after purchasing an additional 927,093 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Hess by 31.0% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,318,822 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $450,696,000 after purchasing an additional 785,270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new stake in shares of Hess in the third quarter valued at approximately $75,126,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Stock Up 3.1 %

Hess stock opened at $147.73 on Friday. Hess Co. has a fifty-two week low of $123.79 and a fifty-two week high of $163.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.12. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $143.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $139.92. The company has a market capitalization of $45.55 billion, a PE ratio of 16.41 and a beta of 1.21.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 earnings per share 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%. Research analysts expect that Hess Co. will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.35%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HES has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Hess in a report on Sunday, March 2nd. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Pickering Energy Partners raised shares of Hess to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Six 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 “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.60.

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.