Qube Research & Technologies Ltd Sells 70,844 Shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Qube Research & Technologies Ltd trimmed its position in shares of Hess Co. (NYSE:HES – Get Rating) by 32.1% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 149,880 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 70,844 shares during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd’s holdings in Hess were worth $16,043,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of HES. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Hess in the 4th quarter worth approximately $279,973,000. BlackRock Inc. boosted its position in shares of Hess by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 22,832,165 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,690,265,000 after purchasing an additional 1,912,120 shares in the last quarter. Packer & Co Ltd purchased a new position in Hess in the 1st quarter worth approximately $86,126,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its holdings in Hess by 36.5% in the 4th quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 2,944,700 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $217,996,000 after acquiring an additional 786,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Anchor Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Hess in the 1st quarter worth approximately $60,301,000. 82.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hess Trading Up 3.0 %

NYSE:HES opened at $102.89 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.69 and a quick ratio of 1.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.85 and a beta of 1.61. Hess Co. has a one year low of $61.93 and a one year high of $131.43. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $109.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $105.12.

Hess (NYSE:HES – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 27th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.60 billion. Hess had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 15.53%. Hess’s revenue was up 87.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.24 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Hess Co. will post 9.41 EPS for the current year.

Hess Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 15th were issued a $0.375 dividend. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 14th. Hess’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on HES. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Hess from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 19th. Susquehanna Bancshares boosted their price objective on shares of Hess from $118.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Monday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Hess from $141.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 19th. Citigroup lowered shares of Hess from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $126.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Friday, June 24th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Hess from $118.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Monday, April 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $133.92.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Barbara J. Lowery-Yilmaz sold 36,260 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.29, for a total value of $4,651,795.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 95,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,267,602.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 9.93% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Hess

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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.