Anchor Capital Advisors LLC Sells 3,417 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Anchor Capital Advisors LLC lowered its stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 249,814 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,417 shares during the period. Hershey accounts for approximately 1.3% of Anchor Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $45,461,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Norges Bank bought a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $272,506,000. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 240.0% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,262,671 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,183,000 after buying an additional 891,287 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 121.2% in the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,104,299 shares of the company’s stock valued at $206,559,000 after buying an additional 605,048 shares in the last quarter. Candlestick Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Hershey during the third quarter worth $64,469,000. Finally, Clark Capital Management Group Inc. acquired a new position in Hershey during the third quarter worth $44,464,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.10, for a total transaction of $291,150.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 57,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,198,599.50. This trade represents a 2.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Down 1.2%

HSY opened at $184.12 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $196.96 and a 200-day moving average of $198.76. The company has a market capitalization of $37.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.09. Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $158.67 and a fifty-two week high of $239.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.24.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.31. Hershey had a net margin of 9.12% and a return on equity of 28.98%. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.09 earnings per share. Hershey’s revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $1.452 per share. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 108.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on HSY shares. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $247.00 to $227.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $249.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. TD Cowen raised shares of Hershey from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $185.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Hershey from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 4th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $218.06.

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.