Signaturefd LLC Has $412,000 Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Signaturefd LLC lowered its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 16.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,146 shares of the company’s stock after selling 433 shares during the quarter. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $412,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Hershey by 55.0% in the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY increased its stake in Hershey by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 7,355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,411,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its stake in Hershey by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 1,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $308,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Hershey by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,631 shares of the company’s stock valued at $484,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. Finally, Rehmann Capital Advisory Group increased its stake in Hershey by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 1,165 shares of the company’s stock valued at $227,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Hershey from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $184.00 to $163.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $188.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Argus lowered shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $179.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Hershey in a research note on Tuesday. They set a “sell” rating and a $165.00 price target on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $191.55.

Hershey Price Performance

NYSE:HSY opened at $181.26 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $192.75 and a 200-day moving average of $192.81. The company has a market capitalization of $36.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.14, a PEG ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 0.37. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $178.82 and a 52 week high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. Hershey’s revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.01 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 9.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.89%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at $644,912.46. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.