Hershey Company (The) $HSY Stake Raised by Cromwell Holdings LLC

Cromwell Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 173.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 514 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 326 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $85,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HSY. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. acquired a new stake in Hershey in the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Hershey by 129.5% in the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. Fort Vancouver Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey in the first quarter worth approximately $34,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey in the first quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new stake in Hershey in the first quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $3,472,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 193,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,852,320. The trade was a 9.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 5,000 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $900,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 61,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,037,420. The trade was a 7.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 65,704 shares of company stock worth $12,206,910. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Price Performance

NYSE HSY opened at $189.00 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.10, a P/E/G ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 0.26. Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $140.13 and a 1 year high of $208.03. The business’s fifty day moving average is $185.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $172.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.53.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.50 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 37.36% and a net margin of 13.54%.The firm’s revenue was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.27 earnings per share. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.809-5.997 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Hershey Company will post 6.12 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 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 72.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HSY has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Hershey in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $187.00 target price for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on Hershey from $155.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $170.00 to $222.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Bank of America upped their target price on Hershey from $175.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on Hershey from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $174.05.

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.