Woodline Partners LP Takes $8.82 Million Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Woodline Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 52,070 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,818,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of HSY. Montag & Caldwell LLC purchased a new position in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 42.5% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 238 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY traded up $3.09 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $158.44. 2,003,936 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,886,076. 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 Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $140.13 and a 1 year high of $208.03. The company has a market cap of $32.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.54, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $164.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $166.76.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.15. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.07 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

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 paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Hershey's payout ratio is currently 67.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HSY has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler cut Hershey from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays upped their price target on Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Bernstein Bank dropped 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. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Hershey presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target 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.