Ieq Capital LLC Sells 1,224 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Ieq Capital LLC cut its position in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 12.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,011 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 1,224 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC’s holdings in Hess were worth $1,198,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in HES. Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in Hess by 100.2% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 98,429 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $13,367,000 after acquiring an additional 49,267 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hess by 21.5% during the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 15,126 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,054,000 after purchasing an additional 2,673 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in Hess by 15.0% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 11,864 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,611,000 after buying an additional 1,548 shares during the period. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd raised its stake in Hess by 57.0% in the third quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 11,074 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,477,000 after buying an additional 4,020 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Hess by 22.8% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 16,264 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,173,000 after acquiring an additional 3,025 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of HES stock opened at $148.74 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $45.83 billion, a PE ratio of 16.53 and a beta of 1.17. Hess Co. has a 52-week low of $123.79 and a 52-week high of $163.98. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $141.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $139.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 expect that Hess Co. will post 8.08 EPS for the current year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.34%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.22%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on HES shares. Citigroup boosted their price target on Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. UBS Group increased their price target 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. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Hess in a research report on Saturday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Pickering Energy Partners raised shares of Hess to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $151.00 to $193.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.60.

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.