Cary Street Partners Financial LLC Invests $314,000 in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Cary Street Partners Financial LLC acquired a new stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 1,853 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $314,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Capital International Investors increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 31.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,460,147 shares of the company's stock worth $2,110,126,000 after acquiring an additional 2,980,997 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,635,390 shares of the company's stock worth $785,003,000 after acquiring an additional 247,675 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,801,145 shares of the company's stock worth $642,139,000 after acquiring an additional 47,394 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,578,957 shares of the company's stock worth $267,396,000 after acquiring an additional 154,238 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,282,681 shares of the company's stock worth $217,222,000 after acquiring an additional 87,498 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of HSY traded down $1.36 on Wednesday, hitting $161.94. 1,461,385 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,769,040. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $32.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.86, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The stock's 50 day moving average is $167.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $168.16. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $140.13 and a 1 year high of $209.65.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.07 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is currently 67.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $173.00 to $165.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $178.00 to $175.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $161.40.

Hershey Company 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.