Capital Investment Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Capital Investment Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 63.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,349 shares of the company's stock after selling 21,794 shares during the period. Capital Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Hershey were worth $2,112,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Capital International Investors boosted its position in Hershey by 31.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,460,147 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,110,126,000 after buying an additional 2,980,997 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,635,390 shares of the company's stock worth $785,003,000 after purchasing an additional 247,675 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,801,145 shares of the company's stock worth $642,139,000 after purchasing an additional 47,394 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 38.6% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,628,047 shares of the company's stock worth $275,710,000 after purchasing an additional 453,428 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,578,957 shares of the company's stock worth $267,396,000 after purchasing an additional 154,238 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on HSY. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $178.00 to $175.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of Hershey from $147.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $183.00 to $177.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Five investment 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 has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $158.84.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 owns 193,624 shares in the company, valued at $31,134,739.20. This represents a 13.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,994 shares in the company, valued at $470,387.34. The trade was a 24.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hershey Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of Hershey stock opened at $161.83 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $140.13 and a 12-month high of $208.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.85, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.29. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $163.17 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $165.80.

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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.15. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. The business had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.07 EPS. Hershey's revenue for the quarter was down 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.39%. Hershey's 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.

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