The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Sold by Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC

Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lessened its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 12.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,928 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,824 shares during the quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,189,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in 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. State Street Corp grew its stake in 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. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew 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 valued at $112,491,000 after purchasing an additional 139,831 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted 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 worth $841,476,000 after buying an additional 109,336 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth approximately $18,273,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of Hershey 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at approximately $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on HSY shares. UBS Group reduced their target price on Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. DA Davidson reduced their target price on Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.15.

Hershey Stock Up 2.8 %

HSY opened at $185.11 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $140.13 and a 12 month high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The stock has a market cap of $37.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.98, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $161.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $176.54.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. As a group, research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.96%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.28%.

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.