Bridges Investment Management Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY)

Bridges Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 2.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 67,257 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,915 shares during the period. Bridges Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Hershey were worth $11,503,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Kennon Green & Company LLC grew its position in Hershey by 33.3% during the first quarter. Kennon Green & Company LLC now owns 43,146 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,379,000 after purchasing an additional 10,784 shares in the last quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 9.5% during the 1st quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 31,925 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,460,000 after acquiring an additional 2,757 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its holdings in Hershey by 8.1% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 18,625 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,186,000 after purchasing an additional 1,390 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its holdings in Hershey by 8.1% during the 1st quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 21,151 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,617,000 after purchasing an additional 1,582 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Elevate Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Hershey by 23.2% during the 1st quarter. Elevate Capital Advisors LLC now owns 14,105 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,412,000 after purchasing an additional 2,657 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP James Turoff sold 1,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total transaction of $227,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 25,321 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,431,175. This represents a 4.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,333 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $233,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 39,402 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,895,350. The trade was a 3.27% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 54,107 shares of company stock valued at $9,008,118 over the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on HSY. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of Hershey from $147.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $183.00 to $177.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $173.00 to $165.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Hershey from $162.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $158.84.

Hershey Price Performance

Hershey stock traded down $1.36 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $163.28. 80,878 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,802,879. The company has a market cap of $33.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.98 and a beta of 0.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $208.03. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $165.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $164.80.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 38.70%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.07 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is 67.57%.

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.