Ascent Group LLC Raises Position in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC significantly increased its position in Hershey Company by 284.7%, acquiring an additional 4,404 shares to hold a total of 5,951 shares valued at approximately $987,000.
• Hershey reported earnings of $1.21 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding estimates of $0.98, with a revenue of $2.61 billion compared to anticipated $2.50 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.37 per share, amounting to an annualized dividend of $5.48 and a yield of 2.8%.

Ascent Group LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 284.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,951 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,404 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Hershey were worth $987,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Hershey by 7.7% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,991,639 shares of the company's stock worth $853,720,000 after purchasing an additional 356,249 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in shares of Hershey by 25.4% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,753,077 shares of the company's stock worth $470,858,000 after buying an additional 557,056 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,590,903 shares of the company's stock worth $272,092,000 after acquiring an additional 11,946 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its position in Hershey by 40.4% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 1,237,107 shares of the company's stock valued at $208,227,000 after acquiring an additional 356,105 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Hershey by 1.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,020,569 shares of the company's stock worth $174,536,000 after acquiring an additional 17,311 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of HSY opened at $195.04 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $185.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $173.25. The firm has a market cap of $39.54 billion, a PE ratio of 25.90, a P/E/G ratio of 4.71 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $140.13 and a 1-year high of $208.03.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 37.36% and a net margin of 13.54%.Hershey's revenue was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.27 earnings per share. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.809-5.997 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. Hershey's payout ratio is 72.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.00, for a total value of $3,742,260.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 193,624 shares in the company, valued at $37,563,056. This represents a 9.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.12, for a total value of $283,680.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 58,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,029,289.28. This represents a 2.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 65,704 shares of company stock valued at $12,206,910. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HSY has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on shares of Hershey from $155.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Hershey from $160.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Hershey from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $174.05.

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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