Fort Baker Capital Management LP Makes New Investment in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES)

Fort Baker Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 119,257 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $15,862,000. Hess makes up 2.6% of Fort Baker Capital Management LP’s holdings, making the stock its 14th largest position.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Hess by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 33,141,244 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $4,408,117,000 after buying an additional 296,406 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. boosted its position in shares of Hess by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 11,438,985 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,521,499,000 after acquiring an additional 698,866 shares in the last quarter. HBK Investments L P increased its stake in Hess by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. HBK Investments L P now owns 7,237,911 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $962,715,000 after acquiring an additional 120,091 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Hess by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,695,533 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $888,240,000 after purchasing an additional 158,371 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Hess by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,844,257 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $511,325,000 after purchasing an additional 91,131 shares during the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hess Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE HES opened at $132.06 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $140.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $141.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.13. Hess Co. has a 1 year low of $123.79 and a 1 year high of $161.69. The firm has a market cap of $40.85 billion, a PE ratio of 14.67 and a beta of 0.61.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.14). Hess had a net margin of 21.27% and a return on equity of 26.32%. The business had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.16 EPS. Hess’s revenue was down 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Hess Co. will post 8.08 EPS for the current year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.51%. Hess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.66%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO John B. Hess sold 175,000 shares of Hess stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.30, for a total transaction of $27,877,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,384,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $379,879,364.70. This trade represents a 6.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 9.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HES has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Susquehanna decreased their price target on Hess from $160.00 to $136.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Hess in a research report on Monday, May 5th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Hess from $170.00 to $163.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Hess from $164.00 to $146.58 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.46.

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.