Rohit Grover Sells 3,500 Shares of Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Stock

Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) insider Rohit Grover sold 3,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total value of $791,245.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 34,568 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,814,787.76. This represents a 9.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE HSY traded up $1.71 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $231.35. 1,422,302 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,179,397. Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $150.04 and a 1 year high of $234.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.19. The company has a market capitalization of $46.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.18. The business’s 50 day moving average is $200.63 and its 200-day moving average is $189.43.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.31. The company had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 7.55% and a return on equity of 27.90%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.69 EPS. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.520 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be given a dividend of $1.452 per share. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. This is a boost from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.37. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 133.64%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in Hershey by 6.5% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 15,310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,618,000 after buying an additional 937 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Hershey by 21.0% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 499,251 shares of the company’s stock valued at $82,851,000 after purchasing an additional 86,692 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in Hershey by 149.9% in the second quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 14,691 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,438,000 after purchasing an additional 8,812 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its holdings in Hershey by 4.0% during the second quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 22,467 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,728,000 after purchasing an additional 869 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 25.0% during the 2nd quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 71,919 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,935,000 after buying an additional 14,400 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on HSY shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Hershey from $185.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $236.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $249.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Hershey from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $222.21.

Hershey Company 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.