Wakefield Asset Management LLLP Invests $3.39 Million in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Wakefield Asset Management LLLP purchased a new position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 22,974 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $3,389,000. Hess accounts for 1.2% of Wakefield Asset Management LLLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. bought a new position in Hess in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in Hess in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in Hess in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in Hess during the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Hess by 47.6% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 273 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on HES. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Hess from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $166.00 to $172.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Scotiabank decreased their target price on Hess from $165.00 to $157.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Hess from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Hess in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Hess from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hess presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $174.46.

Hess Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE HES opened at $126.29 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $141.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $148.23. The stock has a market cap of $38.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.34 and a beta of 1.15. Hess Co. has a 52-week low of $125.89 and a 52-week high of $167.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.27.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $3.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.24 billion. Hess had a net margin of 21.22% and a return on equity of 27.43%. Hess’s revenue for the quarter was up 40.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.65 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Hess Co. will post 11.12 EPS for the current year.

Hess Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. This is an increase from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.80%.

About Hess

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.