ClearAlpha Technologies LP Lowers Stock Position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

ClearAlpha Technologies LP lessened its position in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 30.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 62,715 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 27,873 shares during the quarter. Hess accounts for 2.4% of ClearAlpha Technologies LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. ClearAlpha Technologies LP’s holdings in Hess were worth $8,517,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of HES. HBK Investments L P grew its stake in shares of Hess by 16.7% during the 3rd quarter. HBK Investments L P now owns 7,117,820 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $966,600,000 after purchasing an additional 1,017,720 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Hess by 31.0% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,318,822 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $450,696,000 after buying an additional 785,270 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in shares of Hess by 34.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,835,486 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $418,291,000 after acquiring an additional 726,631 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in shares of Hess by 76.4% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,532,132 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $227,273,000 after acquiring an additional 663,338 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in shares of Hess by 64.3% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,449,969 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $218,220,000 after acquiring an additional 567,550 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HES opened at $147.18 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $140.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $142.04. Hess Co. has a 52-week low of $123.79 and a 52-week high of $163.98. The company has a market cap of $45.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.15 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.26.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.26. Hess had a return on equity of 27.41% and a net margin of 20.58%. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.96 billion. During the same period in the previous 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. As a group, analysts anticipate that Hess Co. will post 9.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hess Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. This is a boost from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Hess’s payout ratio is currently 23.31%.

Insider Activity at Hess

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HES has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group lowered their target price on Hess from $192.00 to $173.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Wolfe Research raised Hess from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Hess from $149.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Hess from $157.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Hess from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hess has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price 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.