Geode Capital Management LLC Increases Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,801,145 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 47,394 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $642,139,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of HSY. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 18.3% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 6,470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,241,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. purchased a new position in Hershey in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $385,000. Atom Investors LP bought a new stake in Hershey in the third quarter valued at approximately $208,000. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 61.9% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 120,159 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,052,000 after purchasing an additional 45,936 shares during the period. Finally, Investment Management Corp of Ontario grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 48.0% in the third quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 4,931 shares of the company’s stock worth $946,000 after purchasing an additional 1,600 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on HSY. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Bernstein Bank dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Citigroup upgraded Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $159.00 to $154.00 in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Hershey has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $162.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hershey Price Performance

HSY stock opened at $166.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.30, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $165.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $173.14. The Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $140.13 and a 52-week high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.28%.

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.