Zacks Research Comments on Hess Co.’s Q3 2024 Earnings (NYSE:HES)

Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research upped their Q3 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Hess in a report released on Monday, September 9th. Zacks Research analyst A. Kanoria now expects that the oil and gas producer will earn $2.53 per share for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $2.52. The consensus estimate for Hess’ current full-year earnings is $11.12 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Hess’ Q4 2024 earnings at $2.27 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $10.58 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $2.89 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $3.06 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $2.99 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $3.18 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $12.12 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $2.56 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $2.61 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $9.98 EPS.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $3.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.24 billion. Hess had a net margin of 21.22% and a return on equity of 27.43%. The firm’s revenue was up 40.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.65 earnings per share.

HES has been the subject of a number of other reports. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on Hess from $151.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on Hess from $165.00 to $157.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Hess from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $166.00 to $172.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Hess in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Hess from $193.00 to $192.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $174.46.

Hess Price Performance

HES stock opened at $126.35 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $140.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $147.78. Hess has a 1 year low of $123.79 and a 1 year high of $167.75. The stock has a market cap of $38.93 billion, a PE ratio of 19.35 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

Hess Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a positive change from Hess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.58%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.63%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hess by 21.9% during the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,306 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,197,000 after buying an additional 1,490 shares in the last quarter. SCP Investment LP raised its stake in Hess by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. SCP Investment LP now owns 2,800 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $398,000 after acquiring an additional 1,400 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hess in the fourth quarter worth about $65,000. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hess by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 10,538 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,519,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hess by 13.0% during the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,336 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,346,000 after purchasing an additional 1,076 shares during the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.