BNP Paribas Buys 17,520 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• BNP Paribas sharply increased its Hershey stake in the fourth quarter, buying 17,520 additional shares and lifting its holdings to 17,562 shares valued at about $3.2 million.
• Hershey recently reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $2.35 versus $2.04 expected and revenue of $3.10 billion, while analysts now see full-year earnings of $8.45 per share.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.452 per share to be paid on June 15, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with an average price target of $218.06.

BNP Paribas grew its stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 41,714.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,562 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 17,520 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas' holdings in Hershey were worth $3,197,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Close Asset Management Ltd grew its position in 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 during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.10, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 2.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hershey Price Performance

NYSE HSY opened at $185.92 on Tuesday. Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $157.77 and a 12 month high of $239.48. The stock has a market cap of $37.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.62, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.09. The company's 50 day moving average is $196.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $198.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.09 EPS. The firm's 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 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.452 per share. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 108.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on HSY. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $211.00 to $204.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Evercore raised shares of Hershey from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $255.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $240.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $247.00 to $227.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, DA Davidson dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $230.00 to $208.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $218.06.

Hershey 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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