Diametric Capital LP Sells 11,754 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Diametric Capital LP trimmed its position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 60.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,628 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 11,754 shares during the quarter. Diametric Capital LP’s holdings in Hess were worth $1,015,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. J.Safra Asset Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Hess in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in Hess in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Groupama Asset Managment grew its position in Hess by 22.7% in the third quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 22,606 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 4,186 shares during the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in Hess during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Hess in the third quarter worth about $37,000. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on HES shares. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Hess in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. UBS Group increased their price target on Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Pickering Energy Partners raised Hess to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hess has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $170.60.

Hess Stock Performance

NYSE:HES opened at $159.96 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.12. Hess Co. has a fifty-two week low of $123.79 and a fifty-two week high of $163.98. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $147.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $142.23. The company has a market capitalization of $49.31 billion, a PE ratio of 17.77 and a beta of 1.21.

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

Hess Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.25%. Hess’s payout ratio is 22.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.30, for a total transaction of $27,877,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,384,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $379,879,364.70. This represents a 6.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 9.76% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.