Stratos Investment Management LLC Makes New Investment in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY)

Stratos Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 3,669 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $628,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Montag & Caldwell LLC bought a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Proffitt & Goodson Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of HSY stock traded up $2.73 on Thursday, hitting $164.68. The stock had a trading volume of 666,726 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,802,214. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $165.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $164.83. The company has a market cap of $33.36 billion, a PE ratio of 20.31, a P/E/G ratio of 6.28 and a beta of 0.30. Hershey Company has a one year low of $140.13 and a one year high of $208.03.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.15. Hershey had a return on equity of 38.70% and a net margin of 15.32%. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.07 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.33%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.57%.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related news, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.80, for a total value of $5,018,568.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 193,624 shares in the company, valued at $31,134,739.20. This represents a 13.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,333 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $233,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 39,402 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,895,350. This represents a 3.27% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 54,107 shares of company stock worth $9,008,118. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. 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 report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Hershey from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Sunday. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $178.00 to $175.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $147.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $158.84.

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.