The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Purchased by Bogart Wealth LLC

Bogart Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,668 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the period. Bogart Wealth LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $282,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of HSY. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Hershey by 30,461.7% during the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Hershey by 66.7% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,571,000 after buying an additional 389,404 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 5.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,348,127,000 after buying an additional 386,670 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in Hershey by 31.3% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 586,565 shares of the company’s stock valued at $112,491,000 after acquiring an additional 139,831 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake 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 last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Performance

HSY opened at $157.99 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $162.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $179.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The company has a market capitalization of $31.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.37. The Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $140.13 and a 1-year high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. Research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.47%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on HSY. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut 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. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $178.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $164.15.

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.