Insider Sale: Chief Executive Officer of $HES Sells 214,349 Shares

HES CEO John B Hess sold 214,349 shares on 06-06-2025 for approximately $29.1 million, representing about 10.8% of his holdings, leaving him with 1,765,430 shares; insider trading activity over the past six months shows only sales, with Hess selling 825,000 shares for around $119.6 million. Q1 2025 institutional activity was mixed, with Wellington Management reducing its position by 77.9% while Vanguard and UBS increased theirs by 5.2% and 119.0% respectively; analyst ratings are generally positive, with three recent buy ratings and a median price target of $178.

Analysis

Recent insider activity at Hess Corporation ($HES) reveals significant selling pressure, with CEO John B. Hess divesting 214,349 shares on June 6, 2025, for approximately $29.1 million, reducing his stake by 10.8% to 1,765,430 shares. Over the past six months, insiders have exclusively sold shares, totaling 18 transactions, with no purchases recorded; notably, CEO Hess executed 10 sales amounting to 825,000 shares for an estimated $119.6 million, and COO Gregory P. Hill made 8 sales of 57,858 shares for roughly $9.1 million. This contrasts with a mixed institutional landscape in Q1 2025, where 426 institutions added HES shares while 423 reduced positions. Significant institutional divestments include Wellington Management Group LLP cutting its stake by 2,993,710 shares (-77.9%) and Holocene Advisors, LP exiting its entire position of 1,279,561 shares. Conversely, Vanguard Group Inc increased its holdings by 1,732,497 shares (+5.2%), UBS Group AG added 1,495,324 shares (+119.0%), and Price T Rowe Associates Inc /MD/ boosted its position by 992,383 shares (+94.4%). Despite the heavy insider selling, Wall Street analysts maintain a positive outlook, with three firms issuing buy or overweight ratings in recent months and no sell ratings. The median analyst price target stands at $178.0, based on two targets issued in the last six months: $163.0 from UBS (04/16/2025) and $193.0 from Wells Fargo (12/09/2024). The overall sentiment signals are mixed, reflecting these divergent data points.

Key Decisions for Investors

• Investors should carefully weigh the persistent and substantial insider selling by top executives against the positive analyst ratings and mixed institutional flows before making investment decisions.
• Monitor upcoming institutional holding disclosures for Q2 2025 to ascertain if the trend of significant divestment by some large funds continues or if buying interest from other institutions strengthens.
• Consider the current stock price relative to the median analyst target of $178.0, factoring in the potential risks highlighted by insider sales and the divergent views among large institutional investors.