Fort Pitt Capital Group LLC Invests $3.43 Million in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Fort Pitt Capital Group LLC bought a new position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 17,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,426,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. LPL Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 10.0% during the 2nd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 320,680 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,951,000 after buying an additional 29,246 shares during the period. CreativeOne Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Hershey by 179.4% during the first quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 6,958 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,353,000 after purchasing an additional 4,468 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Hershey by 119.8% during the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 91,766 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,633,000 after purchasing an additional 50,014 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Hershey by 239.2% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 22,035 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,286,000 after purchasing an additional 15,538 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its position in shares of Hershey by 2.2% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 54,540 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,608,000 after purchasing an additional 1,168 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at $644,912.46. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on HSY shares. Citigroup cut Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $195.00 to $182.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Hershey in a report on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $185.00 target price for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Hershey from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $191.61.

Hershey Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $179.26 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $190.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $192.46. 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 company has a market capitalization of $36.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.92, a PEG ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 0.38. The Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $176.78 and a 12-month high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.01 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.42 EPS for the current year.

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.