The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Holdings Lifted by Retirement Guys Formula LLC

Retirement Guys Formula LLC boosted its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 9.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,732 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 321 shares during the period. Retirement Guys Formula LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $716,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Effects LLC increased its stake in Hershey by 7.1% during the third quarter. Wealth Effects LLC now owns 2,267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $435,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. Crew Capital Management Ltd. grew its position in Hershey by 16.9% during the 3rd quarter. Crew Capital Management Ltd. now owns 5,247 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,006,000 after acquiring an additional 760 shares during the last quarter. Suncoast Equity Management grew its position in Hershey by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Suncoast Equity Management now owns 9,707 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,862,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Benin Management CORP grew its position in Hershey by 60.0% during the 3rd quarter. Benin Management CORP now owns 7,679 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,473,000 after acquiring an additional 2,880 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Hershey by 107.7% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 17,609 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,377,000 after buying an additional 9,129 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HSY has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays cut their price target on Hershey from $204.00 to $202.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Argus cut Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Hershey in a report on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $185.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup downgraded shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $195.00 to $182.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, UBS Group cut shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $226.00 to $209.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $195.00.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of Hershey stock traded down $1.13 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $184.55. The stock had a trading volume of 542,645 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,678,484. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.32 billion, a PE ratio of 18.45, a PEG ratio of 5.44 and a beta of 0.37. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $194.01 and its 200 day moving average is $193.11. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $178.82 and a twelve month high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. Hershey’s revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.01 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were given a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.97%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total value of $286,245.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,531,729.24. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total value of $286,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,531,729.24. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $644,912.46. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Hershey

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.