Prospector Partners LLC Has $8.15 Million Position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Prospector Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 59,983 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after buying an additional 441 shares during the period. Prospector Partners LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $8,146,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Hess during the 2nd quarter worth about $6,054,000. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hess by 59.9% during the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 26,823 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $4,087,000 after purchasing an additional 10,053 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in Hess by 424.8% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 19,466 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,971,000 after purchasing an additional 15,757 shares in the last quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC increased its stake in Hess by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 590,326 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $87,085,000 after buying an additional 15,684 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its position in Hess by 255.1% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 6,836 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,008,000 after buying an additional 4,911 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Price Performance

NYSE:HES opened at $145.35 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market cap of $44.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.94 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $139.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $142.38. Hess Co. has a one year low of $123.79 and a one year high of $163.98.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.26. Hess had a net margin of 20.58% and a return on equity of 27.41%. The business had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.64 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Hess Co. will post 9.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Hess Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This is a positive change from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Hess from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Scotiabank upped their target price on Hess from $157.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Mizuho reduced their price target on Hess from $210.00 to $194.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Hess in a research report on Tuesday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on Hess from $192.00 to $173.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Hess currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $163.30.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 125,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.08, for a total value of $18,385,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 217,894 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,047,849.52. The trade was a 36.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Geurt G. Schoonman sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.91, for a total transaction of $851,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 27,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,914,019.71. This trade represents a 17.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 314,370 shares of company stock worth $45,856,309. Company insiders own 9.76% of the company’s stock.

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.