Headinvest LLC Reduces Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Headinvest LLC lessened its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 14.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,225 shares of the company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the quarter. Headinvest LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $207,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Capital International Investors boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 31.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,460,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,110,126,000 after buying an additional 2,980,997 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,635,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $785,003,000 after purchasing an additional 247,675 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,801,145 shares of the company’s stock valued at $642,139,000 after purchasing an additional 47,394 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 38.6% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,628,047 shares of the company’s stock valued at $275,710,000 after purchasing an additional 453,428 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 10.8% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,578,957 shares of the company’s stock valued at $267,396,000 after purchasing an additional 154,238 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSY has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Hershey from $183.00 to $177.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Hershey from $178.00 to $175.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Piper Sandler lowered Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $161.40.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of HSY stock opened at $153.97 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $165.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $167.18. The company has a market cap of $31.19 billion, a PE ratio of 14.13, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $140.13 and a 12-month high of $208.03.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.07 earnings per share. Analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 67.57%.

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.