Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Boosts Holdings in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,755,376 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 43,061 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned 0.57% of Hess worth $238,380,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of HES. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new position in Hess during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Hess by 59.8% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 262 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Hess by 47.6% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 273 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in Hess during the third quarter valued at about $48,000. Finally, Coastline Trust Co acquired a new stake in Hess during the third quarter worth about $55,000. 88.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hess Trading Up 0.5 %

NYSE:HES opened at $148.65 on Friday. Hess Co. has a one year low of $123.79 and a one year high of $163.98. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $138.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $142.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.26. The stock has a market cap of $45.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.33 and a beta of 1.15.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.88 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.96 billion. Hess had a return on equity of 27.41% and a net margin of 20.58%. The business’s revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.64 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Hess Co. will post 9.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.35%. This is an increase from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Hess’s payout ratio is presently 23.31%.

Insider Activity

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 90,476 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.47, for a total transaction of $12,890,115.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 223,147 shares in the company, valued at $31,791,753.09. This represents a 28.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of Hess stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.91, for a total value of $851,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 27,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,914,019.71. The trade was a 17.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 314,370 shares of company stock worth $45,856,309. 9.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HES has been the subject of a number of research reports. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Hess from $173.00 to $167.00 in a report on Friday, September 13th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of Hess from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Hess from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, September 30th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Hess from $171.00 to $151.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on Hess from $192.00 to $173.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Six equities research 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, Hess presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $163.30.

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.