Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Buys 4,582 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC significantly increased its stake in Hershey Company by 353.3% in Q1, acquiring an additional 4,582 shares, bringing their total holdings to 5,879 shares worth about $1,005,000.
• Insider transactions revealed that Rohit Grover and CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold shares valued at $240,120 and $900,000, respectively, representing decreases of 3.39% and 7.54% in their stakes.
• The Hershey Company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.37 per share to be paid on September 15, with an annualized yield of 3.0% and a current dividend payout ratio of 72.78%.

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 353.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,879 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,582 shares during the quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC's holdings in Hershey were worth $1,005,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. bought a new position in Hershey in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 129.5% in the 1st quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. Finally, Fort Vancouver Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the first quarter worth $34,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other Hershey news, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $240,120.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 38,068 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,852,240. This trade represents a 3.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $900,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 61,319 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,037,420. This represents a 7.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 86,127 shares of company stock worth $15,759,755 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HSY has been the subject of a number of research reports. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Hershey from $171.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Hershey from $135.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $155.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $171.22.

Hershey Trading Down 1.1%

NYSE:HSY opened at $185.71 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $179.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $171.61. 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 $37.65 billion, a PE ratio of 24.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.53 and a beta of 0.27.

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

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is presently 72.78%.

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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