Empirical Finance LLC Sells 102 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Empirical Finance LLC decreased its stake in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 1.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 9,331 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 102 shares during the quarter. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $1,241,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in shares of Hess by 59.8% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 262 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hess during the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in shares of Hess in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $48,000. LRI Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hess by 157.2% in the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 355 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coastline Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Hess during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $55,000. Institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of Hess stock opened at $145.76 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $140.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $138.91. 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 current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market cap of $44.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.20 and a beta of 1.17.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.32. Hess had a return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 21.27%. Sell-side analysts predict that Hess Co. will post 7.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.22%.

Insider Transactions at Hess

In other news, CEO John B. Hess sold 92,894 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.80, for a total value of $13,729,733.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 229,465 shares in the company, valued at $33,914,927. This trade represents a 28.82 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 9.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on HES shares. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Pickering Energy Partners raised shares of Hess to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Hess from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Susquehanna lifted 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. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.50.

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.