Swiss National Bank Sells 39,600 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Swiss National Bank cut its holdings in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 4.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 783,400 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 39,600 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Hess were worth $104,200,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of HES. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Hess by 58.9% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,753,126 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $509,675,000 after purchasing an additional 1,391,311 shares during the last quarter. HBK Investments L P grew its stake in shares of Hess by 16.7% in the third quarter. HBK Investments L P now owns 7,117,820 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $966,600,000 after purchasing an additional 1,017,720 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of Hess by 46.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,930,509 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $389,787,000 after purchasing an additional 927,093 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Hess by 31.0% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,318,822 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $450,696,000 after purchasing an additional 785,270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP bought a new stake in Hess during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $75,126,000. 88.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HES has been the topic of several research reports. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Hess in a research report on Monday, March 10th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Pickering Energy Partners raised Hess to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.60.

Hess Price Performance

Shares of HES opened at $148.21 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $45.69 billion, a PE ratio of 16.47 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $145.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $140.19. Hess Co. has a 1-year low of $123.79 and a 1-year high of $163.98.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.32. Hess had a net margin of 21.27% and a return on equity of 26.32%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Hess Co. will post 8.08 EPS for the current year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

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.