LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI Sells 2,956 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI decreased its holdings in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 15.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,669 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,956 shares during the quarter. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI’s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,931,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC increased its position in 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 acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the second quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the second quarter worth approximately $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related news, insider Stacy Taffet acquired 200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was bought 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 directly owned 9,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,744,786.49. The trade was a 2.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.51, for a total transaction of $282,765.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 53,819 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,145,419.69. The trade was a 2.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 6,000 shares of company stock worth $1,102,725. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on HSY shares. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $170.00 to $222.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Hershey from $180.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. DA Davidson cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $188.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hershey presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $184.95.

Hershey Trading Up 0.7%

HSY opened at $189.40 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $181.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $180.21. The firm has a market cap of $38.41 billion, a PE ratio of 28.31 and a beta of 0.19. Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $199.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 32.08%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.34 EPS. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.900-6.000 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 17th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 17th. Hershey’s payout ratio is 81.91%.

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.