Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Boosts Holdings in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 29.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 10,726 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after buying an additional 2,418 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC’s holdings in Hess were worth $1,427,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Hess by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 81,168 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $10,796,000 after purchasing an additional 1,023 shares in the last quarter. Natixis raised its stake in shares of Hess by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Natixis now owns 131,582 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $17,502,000 after buying an additional 4,276 shares in the last quarter. Norinchukin Bank The lifted its holdings in shares of Hess by 18.7% in the 4th quarter. Norinchukin Bank The now owns 15,159 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,016,000 after buying an additional 2,391 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new stake in shares of Hess in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,406,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Hess by 16.0% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,616,574 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $347,984,000 after acquiring an additional 360,344 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.30, for a total value of $27,877,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,384,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $379,879,364.70. This trade represents a 6.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 9.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hess Stock Performance

Hess stock opened at $130.15 on Thursday. 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 stock has a fifty day moving average of $144.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $142.05. The company has a market capitalization of $40.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.46 and a beta of 0.88.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, analysts anticipate that Hess Co. will post 8.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. Hess’s payout ratio is 22.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on HES shares. Susquehanna reduced their target price on Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Hess from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Pickering Energy Partners upgraded shares of Hess to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of Hess from $164.00 to $146.58 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on Hess in a report on Saturday, April 19th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.46.

Hess Company 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.