Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Boosts Stock Position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 9.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 105,336 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,364 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Hess were worth $14,011,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in HES. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC grew its holdings in Hess by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 2,154 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $287,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in Hess by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 3,971 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $528,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Hess by 5.3% during the 4th 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. Howard Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Hess by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,809 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $241,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in Hess by 18.0% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 629 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hess Trading Up 1.0 %

NYSE HES opened at $161.32 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $49.73 billion, a PE ratio of 17.92 and a beta of 1.21. Hess Co. has a 1-year low of $123.79 and a 1-year high of $163.98. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $148.21 and a 200-day moving average of $142.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 21.27%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Hess Co. will post 8.08 EPS for the current year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. Hess’s payout ratio is 22.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was 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 approximately $379,879,364.70. The trade was a 6.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 9.76% of the company’s stock.

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.