D.A. Davidson & CO. Sells 6,158 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

D.A. Davidson & CO. decreased its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 26.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 17,267 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,158 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,924,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Hershey by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,348,127,000 after purchasing an additional 386,670 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 109,336 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,753,751 shares of the company’s stock valued at $717,606,000 after purchasing an additional 35,688 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Hershey by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,571,000 after purchasing an additional 389,404 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Hershey by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 964,748 shares of the company’s stock valued at $185,027,000 after purchasing an additional 29,507 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Performance

Hershey stock opened at $173.03 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $160.67 and a 200-day moving average of $178.37. The firm has a market cap of $35.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.87, a P/E/G ratio of 5.82 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 posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Sell-side analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.17%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.28%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on HSY shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $178.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $159.00 to $154.00 in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $164.15.

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.