Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC Purchases 4,891 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its holdings in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 34.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 19,235 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,891 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $2,558,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. HBK Investments L P increased its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,017,720 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Hess by 1.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,537,162 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $884,709,000 after acquiring an additional 74,085 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised 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 valued at $509,675,000 after purchasing an additional 1,391,311 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Hess by 31.0% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,318,822 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $450,696,000 after purchasing an additional 785,270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hess by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,755,376 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $238,380,000 after purchasing an additional 43,061 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Stock Performance

Hess stock opened at $146.91 on Wednesday. Hess Co. has a fifty-two week low of $123.79 and a fifty-two week high of $163.98. The company has a market capitalization of $45.27 billion, a PE ratio of 16.32 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $140.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $138.88. 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 issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.32. Hess had a return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 21.27%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Hess Co. will post 7.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. Hess’s payout ratio is 22.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HES has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group increased their price target on Hess from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Hess from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Pickering Energy Partners raised shares of Hess to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on Hess in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hess

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 92,894 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.80, for a total transaction of $13,729,733.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 229,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,914,927. This trade represents a 28.82 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 9.76% 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.