Allstate Corp Acquires 5,728 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• Allstate Corp increased its stake in Hershey by 107% in the fourth quarter, buying 5,728 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 11,082 shares worth about $2.0 million.
• Hershey’s latest earnings beat expectations, with quarterly EPS of $2.35 versus the $2.04 consensus and revenue of $3.10 billion, up 10.7% year over year.
• Analysts remain cautious overall: Hershey has a Hold consensus rating and an average price target of $218.06, while the stock was trading around $196.87.

Allstate Corp raised its holdings in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 107.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 11,082 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,728 shares during the quarter. Allstate Corp's holdings in Hershey were worth $2,017,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Close Asset Management Ltd grew its position in shares of Hershey by 339.3% during the 3rd quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd now owns 246 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on HSY. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $185.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $249.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $215.00 to $200.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $240.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, DA Davidson reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $230.00 to $208.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $218.06.

Hershey Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $196.87 on Friday. Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $154.37 and a 52-week high of $239.48. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $197.82 and a 200 day moving average of $198.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.93 billion, a PE ratio of 36.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.24.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.31. Hershey had a net margin of 9.12% and a return on equity of 28.98%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.09 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Hershey Company will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a $1.452 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. Hershey's payout ratio is currently 108.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.10, for a total value of $291,150.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 57,695 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,198,599.50. The trade was a 2.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hershey Company Profile

The Hershey Company NYSE: HSY is a leading North American chocolatier and snack manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The company develops, produces and markets a wide range of confectionery and snack products for retail, foodservice and international customers. Hershey's business spans manufacturing, branded product marketing, packaging and distribution across grocery, convenience, mass merchant and e-commerce channels.

Hershey's product portfolio centers on chocolate and sugar confectionery, including core brands such as Hershey's, Reese's, Hershey's Kisses and Twizzlers, alongside non-chocolate snacks and confectionery brands.

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