ING Groep NV Buys 119,636 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

ING Groep NV boosted its stake in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 22.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 652,900 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after buying an additional 119,636 shares during the period. Hess makes up about 0.6% of ING Groep NV’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding. ING Groep NV’s holdings in Hess were worth $86,842,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of HES. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hess by 2.4% in the third quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,266 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $444,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hess by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,682 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $224,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hess by 6.6% in the third quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,577 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $214,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Hess by 59.8% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 262 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hess by 6.3% in the third quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,673 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $231,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Hess Stock Up 0.8 %

Hess stock opened at $149.21 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.58 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $140.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $138.85. Hess Co. has a 1-year low of $123.79 and a 1-year high of $163.98.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.32. Hess had a return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 21.27%. Equities research analysts forecast that Hess Co. will post 8.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Hess

In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 92,894 shares of Hess stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.80, for a total value of $13,729,733.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 229,465 shares in the company, valued at $33,914,927. The trade was a 28.82 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 9.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HES has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Pickering Energy Partners upgraded Hess to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on Hess in a research report on Friday, February 14th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.60.

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.