Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) Stock Holdings Boosted by Alberta Investment Management Corp

Alberta Investment Management Corp increased its stake in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) by 259.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 305,880 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 220,680 shares during the quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp owned about 0.10% of Hess worth $40,685,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in Hess in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hess in the third quarter worth about $37,000. Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in Hess in the third quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Hess by 157.2% in the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 355 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.51% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hess news, CEO John B. Hess sold 92,894 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.80, for a total transaction of $13,729,733.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 229,465 shares in the company, valued at $33,914,927. This represents a 28.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 9.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on HES shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Hess in a report on Friday, February 14th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Pickering Energy Partners raised shares of Hess to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $170.60.

Hess Stock Up 1.0 %

HES opened at $148.04 on Wednesday. Hess Co. has a 1-year low of $123.79 and a 1-year high of $163.98. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.45 and a beta of 1.17. The business has a 50 day moving average of $140.42 and a 200-day moving average of $138.78.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 anticipate that Hess Co. will post 7.69 earnings per share for the current 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.35%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

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.