The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Bought by Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund grew its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 21.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,305 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 933 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Hershey were worth $898,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its position in Hershey by 248.0% during the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Hershey during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $46,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its position in Hershey by 61.7% during the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, City State Bank increased its position in Hershey by 210.0% during the 4th quarter. City State Bank now owns 310 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hershey Stock Performance

Hershey stock opened at $163.08 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $33.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $161.78 and a 200-day moving average of $178.81. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. On average, analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSY has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $178.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $164.15.

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.