Archer Investment Corp Reduces Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Archer Investment Corp lessened its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 56.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,066 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,399 shares during the quarter. Archer Investment Corp’s holdings in Hershey were worth $180,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in HSY. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Hershey by 30,461.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 573,643 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,100,130,000 after purchasing an additional 571,766 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 66.7% in the third 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. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,348,127,000 after buying an additional 386,670 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in Hershey by 31.3% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 586,565 shares of the company’s stock worth $112,491,000 after acquiring an additional 139,831 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Hershey by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,387,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $841,476,000 after acquiring an additional 109,336 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Up 4.5 %

HSY stock opened at $152.43 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $30.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.30 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $165.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $180.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $140.13 and a 12 month high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a net margin of 16.17% and a return on equity of 43.24%. Sell-side analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.60%. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 63.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HSY has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Citigroup raised Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $159.00 to $154.00 in a research note on Friday. Finally, Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “sell” rating and a $165.00 target price on the stock. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $166.85.

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.