Tompkins Financial Corp Increases Stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Tompkins Financial Corp raised its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 14.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,016 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 390 shares during the period. Tompkins Financial Corp’s holdings in Hershey were worth $578,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of HSY. LPL Financial LLC raised its position in Hershey by 10.0% in the 2nd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 320,680 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,951,000 after purchasing an additional 29,246 shares in the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC grew its stake 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. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 239.2% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 22,035 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,286,000 after acquiring an additional 15,538 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in Hershey by 2.2% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 54,540 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,608,000 after purchasing an additional 1,168 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA raised its holdings in Hershey by 20.1% during the second quarter. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA now owns 15,716 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,986,000 after purchasing an additional 2,635 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Trading Up 1.6 %

HSY traded up $2.82 during trading on Friday, hitting $175.67. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,115,302 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,375,510. The Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $171.67 and a twelve month high of $211.92. The stock has a market cap of $35.54 billion, a PE ratio of 19.52, a PEG ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 0.38. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $189.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $192.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.48.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.16). Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The company had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.07 billion. On average, analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.89%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the business’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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at $644,912.46. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on HSY shares. UBS Group cut Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $226.00 to $209.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Hershey from $205.00 to $183.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “sell” rating and a $165.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on Hershey from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Hershey presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $190.56.

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.