2,602 Shares in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Purchased by Investmark Advisory Group LLC

Investmark Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 2,602 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $441,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Elevate Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,939,000. Ethos Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Hershey by 59.8% in the 4th quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC now owns 3,962 shares of the company's stock valued at $671,000 after buying an additional 1,483 shares during the last quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at $6,230,000. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at $780,000. Finally, DJE Kapital AG bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $1,040,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on HSY shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Hershey from $147.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Hershey from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $183.00 to $177.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $161.40.

Hershey Trading Down 2.8%

NYSE:HSY opened at $151.37 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $165.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $167.35. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $208.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.67 billion, a PE ratio of 13.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.15. The firm 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 business's quarterly revenue was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.07 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.62%. Hershey's payout ratio is presently 67.57%.

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.

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