Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Has $853.72 Million Stock Holdings in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY)

Key Points

• Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Hershey Company by 7.7%, owning 4,991,639 shares worth approximately $853.7 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Hershey recently reported earnings of $1.21 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, and its revenue increased by 26% compared to the previous year.
• Hershey declared a quarterly dividend of $1.37 per share, reflecting an annualized payout of $5.48 and a dividend yield of 2.9%.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 7.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,991,639 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 356,249 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 2.47% of Hershey worth $853,720,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in Hershey by 31.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,460,147 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,110,126,000 after acquiring an additional 2,980,997 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 18,311.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,010,616 shares of the company's stock worth $1,728,460,000 after buying an additional 1,005,127 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 6,721.3% in the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 819,446 shares of the company's stock worth $140,150,000 after buying an additional 807,433 shares during the last quarter. 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 buying an additional 453,428 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Value Partners Investments Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1,266.3% in the 1st quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 214,794 shares of the company's stock worth $36,777,000 after acquiring an additional 199,073 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSY has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $155.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Hershey from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Hershey from $173.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $169.68.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of Hershey stock traded down $3.29 on Friday, reaching $184.21. The stock had a trading volume of 1,655,457 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,824,238. The business's 50-day moving average price is $173.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $167.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.53. Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $208.03. The stock has a market cap of $37.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 0.27.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.23. Hershey had a net margin of 13.54% and a return on equity of 37.36%. The business had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.27 earnings per share. Hershey's revenue for the quarter was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Hershey's payout ratio is 72.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other Hershey news, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of the business'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 $240,120.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 38,068 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,852,240. The trade was a 3.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.80, for a total transaction of $5,018,568.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 193,624 shares in the company, valued at $31,134,739.20. This trade represents a 13.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 118,311 shares of company stock valued at $20,931,348 in the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hershey 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.