Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc Has $3.55 Million Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc trimmed its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 5.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 20,952 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,232 shares during the quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc’s holdings in Hershey were worth $3,548,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in HSY. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new stake in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,337,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Hershey by 66.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,571,000 after buying an additional 389,404 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Hershey by 61.9% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 120,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,052,000 after purchasing an additional 45,936 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 29,246 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pensionfund Sabic increased its holdings in Hershey by 55.6% during the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 8,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,423,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of Hershey stock traded up $0.55 during trading on Monday, reaching $158.75. 1,513,179 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,687,306. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $174.11 and its 200 day moving average is $185.42. The firm has a market cap of $32.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.38 and a beta of 0.38. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $156.10 and a 1 year high of $211.92.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.45%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.13%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on HSY. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Mizuho cut their target price on Hershey from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Citigroup cut their target price on Hershey from $165.00 to $159.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Hershey from $163.00 to $161.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on Hershey from $202.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $182.21.

Hershey Company 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.