Crane Advisory LLC Invests $261,000 in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Crane Advisory LLC purchased a new position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,575 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $261,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in HSY. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC raised its position in Hershey by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC now owns 46,708 shares of the company's stock worth $7,910,000 after purchasing an additional 3,578 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in Hershey by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 33,996 shares of the company's stock worth $5,757,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its position in Hershey by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 86,625 shares of the company's stock worth $14,879,000 after purchasing an additional 4,596 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in Hershey by 12.0% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 2,626 shares of the company's stock worth $445,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the period. Finally, Valeo Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Hershey by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 11,567 shares of the company's stock worth $1,959,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSY has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $178.00 to $175.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $173.00 to $165.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $147.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $158.84.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, 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 sale 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 that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $470,387.34. This trade represents a 24.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $169.06 on Monday. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $140.13 and a 1 year high of $208.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The company's 50-day moving average is $163.77 and its 200 day moving average is $165.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.51, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.29.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 previous year, the firm posted $3.07 earnings per share. Hershey's quarterly revenue was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. 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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