Hess (NYSE:HES) Now Covered by Analysts at StockNews.com

Investment analysts at StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Hess (NYSE:HES) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Sunday. The firm set a “hold” rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $151.00 to $193.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Pickering Energy Partners upgraded shares of Hess to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Hess currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.60.

Hess Trading Down 3.4 %

NYSE HES opened at $143.83 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.32 billion, a PE ratio of 15.98 and a beta of 1.17. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $142.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $139.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Hess has a 12 month low of $123.79 and a 12 month high of $163.98.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.32. Hess had a return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 21.27%. On average, analysts expect that Hess will post 8.08 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Hess

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. J.Safra Asset Management Corp bought a new stake in Hess in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hess in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its stake in shares of Hess by 22.7% in the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 22,606 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 4,186 shares during the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Hess in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of Hess by 59.8% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 262 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.51% 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.