Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co Purchases 10,500 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co increased its position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 36.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 39,700 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after buying an additional 10,500 shares during the period. Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Hess were worth $5,280,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Hess during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,117,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Hess during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,274,000. Czech National Bank raised its position in shares of Hess by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 59,927 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $7,971,000 after buying an additional 3,625 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hess by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,838,079 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $244,483,000 after buying an additional 82,703 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Hess by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 43,085 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $5,731,000 after acquiring an additional 1,861 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Stock Performance

NYSE:HES opened at $133.89 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.28 billion, a PE ratio of 14.88 and a beta of 0.88. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $148.37 and its 200 day moving average is $142.74. 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.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted 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%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hess Co. will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Hess’s payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling 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 stock was sold at an average price of $159.30, for a total transaction of $27,877,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,384,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $379,879,364.70. This trade represents a 6.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 9.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

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.