Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. Sells 2,383 Shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY)

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lessened its stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 2.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 83,479 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,383 shares during the quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Hershey were worth $14,277,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp boosted its holdings in Hershey by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp now owns 4,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $762,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,768 shares of the company's stock valued at $473,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A now owns 3,240 shares of the company's stock valued at $549,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its position in shares of Hershey by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 5,546 shares of the company's stock worth $939,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Finally, Covestor Ltd raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 42.5% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 238 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.80, for a total value of $5,018,568.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 193,624 shares in the company, valued at $31,134,739.20. This trade represents a 13.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.11, for a total transaction of $153,025.14. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $470,387.34. The trade was a 24.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

Hershey Stock Down 2.6%

NYSE HSY traded down $4.40 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $167.65. 2,234,449 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,798,817. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.59. The company has a market capitalization of $33.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.32 and a beta of 0.29. The company's 50-day moving average is $164.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $165.40. Hershey Company has a one year low of $140.13 and a one year high of $208.03.

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

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th were paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.27%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. Hershey's payout ratio is presently 67.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Hershey from $183.00 to $177.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Hershey from $162.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on Hershey from $167.00 to $155.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $158.84.

About Hershey

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.