Ahead of the Bell: Hess upgraded on high oil prices

Paul Cheung raised his rating on New York-based Hess Corp. to "Equal weight" from "Underweight," and raised his profit estimates for the last three quarters of 2008. He lifted his price target to $110 per share from $99.

Shares finished at $114.96 Thursday, and reached an all-time high of $118.47 on Wednesday.

Cheung said it looks less likely that oil prices will drop significantly this year. The results of Hess' exploration for new oil sites could lift the stock, he added.

Cheung now expects Hess to earn $2.81, $2.43 and $2.30 per share over the next three quarters. On average, analysts polled by Thomson Financial expect $2.23, $2.01 and $1.94 per share.