19,955 Shares in Hershey Company (The) $HSY Acquired by Rakuten Investment Management Inc.

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 19,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,733,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 1,537.5% during the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 131 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey during the second quarter worth $28,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the second quarter valued at $31,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 46.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 199 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Hershey in the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hershey news, insider Stacy Taffet acquired 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $186.19 per share, with a total value of $37,238.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 9,371 shares in the company, valued at $1,744,786.49. The trade was a 2.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kirk Tanner bought 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $185.46 per share, with a total value of $370,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 47,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,876,115.60. This represents a 4.36% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 6,000 shares of company stock worth $1,119,450. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Down 2.8%

HSY stock opened at $190.60 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $186.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $183.39. The company has a market cap of $38.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.49 and a beta of 0.18. Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $140.13 and a 12-month high of $201.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 32.08%. Hershey’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.34 earnings per share. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.900-6.000 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th were paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 17th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 81.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HSY has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $188.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Hershey in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $181.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $182.00 target price on Hershey and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $191.83.

Hershey Profile

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a leading North American chocolatier and snack manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The company develops, produces and markets a wide range of confectionery and snack products for retail, foodservice and international customers. Hershey’s business spans manufacturing, branded product marketing, packaging and distribution across grocery, convenience, mass merchant and e-commerce channels.

Hershey’s product portfolio centers on chocolate and sugar confectionery, including core brands such as Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses and Twizzlers, alongside non-chocolate snacks and confectionery brands.