Carnegie Investment Counsel Purchases 7,835 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Carnegie Investment Counsel increased its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 60.8% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 20,730 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,835 shares during the quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel’s holdings in Hershey were worth $3,976,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Hershey by 20.6% in the 4th 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. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in Hershey by 55.0% in the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its position in Hershey by 13.3% in the 1st 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. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY grew its position in Hershey by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 7,355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,411,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Finally, Wesbanco Bank Inc. grew its position in Hershey by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 1,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $308,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Hershey in a research report on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $185.00 price target for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Hershey from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $184.00 to $163.00 in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $179.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, June 21st. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $195.68.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total value of $286,245.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,531,729.24. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total value of $286,245.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at $6,531,729.24. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $644,912.46. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of Hershey stock opened at $185.98 on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $195.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $193.52. The company has a market cap of $37.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.43, a PEG ratio of 5.44 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $178.82 and a 12-month high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its earnings results 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 company had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.01 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is 54.31%.

Hershey Profile

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.