Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec Has $4.42 Million Position in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec has reduced its stake in Hershey Company (The) by 28.4%, now holding 25,842 shares worth approximately $4.42 million.
• Hershey's stock has seen recent mixed analyst ratings, with Barclays raising the price target to $190, while others like UBS lowered their target to $170.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $1.37, equating to an annual yield of 3.0%, with a payout ratio of 72.78%.

Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec trimmed its holdings in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 28.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 25,842 shares of the company's stock after selling 10,263 shares during the period. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec's holdings in Hershey were worth $4,420,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kennon Green & Company LLC boosted its stake in Hershey by 33.3% in the 1st quarter. Kennon Green & Company LLC now owns 43,146 shares of the company's stock worth $7,379,000 after purchasing an additional 10,784 shares during the period. William Allan Corp boosted its stake in Hershey by 173.1% in the 1st quarter. William Allan Corp now owns 18,593 shares of the company's stock worth $3,180,000 after purchasing an additional 11,785 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd boosted its stake in Hershey by 9.5% in the 1st quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 31,925 shares of the company's stock worth $5,460,000 after purchasing an additional 2,757 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in Hershey by 8.1% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 18,625 shares of the company's stock worth $3,186,000 after purchasing an additional 1,390 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Hershey in the 1st quarter worth approximately $55,269,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Hershey Stock Performance

HSY traded up $1.72 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $185.47. The stock had a trading volume of 599,714 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,810,867. The firm has a market cap of $37.60 billion, a PE ratio of 24.62, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.27. Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $140.13 and a 12 month high of $208.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $177.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $170.66.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 13.54% and a return on equity of 37.36%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.27 EPS. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.809-5.997 EPS. Analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on HSY shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $173.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Hershey from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Hershey from $171.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Hershey from $135.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $170.83.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $900,000.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 61,319 shares in the company, valued at $11,037,420. This trade represents a 7.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP James Turoff sold 1,300 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 transaction of $227,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 25,321 shares in the company, valued at $4,431,175. This represents a 4.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 86,127 shares of company stock valued at $15,759,755. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

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.