Confluence Investment Management LLC Sells 27,106 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Confluence Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 3.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 663,243 shares of the company's stock after selling 27,106 shares during the period. Hershey accounts for 1.8% of Confluence Investment Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Confluence Investment Management LLC owned 0.33% of Hershey worth $116,366,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Hershey by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,067,235 shares of the company's stock worth $3,469,855,000 after acquiring an additional 191,671 shares during the period. Capital International Investors increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 9,106,431 shares of the company's stock worth $1,657,189,000 after purchasing an additional 169,660 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Hershey by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,253,041 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,356,681,000 after purchasing an additional 128,982 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,315,653 shares of the company's stock worth $967,343,000 after buying an additional 124,464 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,831,101 shares of the company's stock worth $876,434,000 after acquiring an additional 104,024 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 53,195 shares in the company, valued at $9,043,150. This trade represents a 2.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.08% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hershey Trading Up 1.5%

NYSE:HSY opened at $177.72 on Tuesday. Hershey Company has a one year low of $161.43 and a one year high of $239.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 1.18. The firm has a market cap of $36.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.11. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $178.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $196.60.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.63 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 31.92% and a net margin of 12.24%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.21 earnings per share. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.360-8.520 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Hershey Company will post 8.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a $1.452 dividend. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is presently 79.23%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HSY has been the subject of several research reports. TD Cowen raised shares of Hershey from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $210.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $249.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Evercore set a $225.00 price objective on Hershey in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Hershey from $190.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hershey presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $203.61.

Hershey Profile

The Hershey Company NYSE: HSY is a leading North American chocolatier and snack manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The company develops, produces and markets a wide range of confectionery and snack products for retail, foodservice and international customers. Hershey's business spans manufacturing, branded product marketing, packaging and distribution across grocery, convenience, mass merchant and e-commerce channels.

Hershey's product portfolio centers on chocolate and sugar confectionery, including core brands such as Hershey's, Reese's, Hershey's Kisses and Twizzlers, alongside non-chocolate snacks and confectionery brands.

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