Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Price Target Raised to $195.00 at Citigroup

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its price target hoisted by Citigroup from $188.00 to $195.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on HSY. Argus reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Edward Jones reaffirmed a hold rating on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $204.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $204.50.

Hershey Stock Down 0.3 %

Hershey stock traded down $0.54 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $199.08. 2,235,769 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,718,185. Hershey has a twelve month low of $178.82 and a twelve month high of $233.21. The company has a fifty day moving average of $189.85 and a 200-day moving average of $192.72. The company has a market cap of $40.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.72, a P/E/G ratio of 4.96 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.01 earnings per share. Hershey’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Hershey will post 9.59 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s payout ratio is 54.31%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.54, for a total value of $306,810.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 37,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,614,615.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 4,500 shares of company stock valued at $867,450 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hershey

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 20.6% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 316 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 3,661 shares of the company’s stock valued at $683,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 5,839 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,089,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Mount Lucas Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Mount Lucas Management LP now owns 9,619 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,793,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 13.3% in the first quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 486 shares of the company’s stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

About Hershey

The Hershey Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of confectionery products and pantry items in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: North America Confectionery, North America Salty Snacks, and International. It offers chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery products; gum and mint refreshment products, including mints, chewing gums, and bubble gums; protein bars; pantry items, such as baking ingredients, toppings, beverages, and sundae syrups; and snack items comprising spreads, bars, snack bites, mixes, popcorn, and pretzels.