Axa S.A. Purchases 8,537 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Axa S.A. boosted its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 17.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 57,120 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 8,537 shares during the period. Axa S.A.'s holdings in Hershey were worth $9,673,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Montag & Caldwell LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 248.0% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on HSY. DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $162.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Bernstein Bank reduced their price objective on Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $161.40.

Hershey Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $166.40 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $211.92. The company's fifty day moving average is $168.60 and its 200-day moving average is $168.65. The stock has a market cap of $33.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.27, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.15. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.07 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.57%.

Hershey Profile

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.

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