Dearborn Partners LLC Takes Position in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• Dearborn Partners acquired 12,569 Hershey shares in the second quarter, valued at approximately $2.6 million. Several other institutional investors also initiated positions, with institutions now owning 57.96% of HSY.
• Analysts maintain a generally cautious outlook: Hershey has a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $204.78, although TD Cowen upgraded the stock to “Buy.”
• Hershey reported quarterly earnings of $1.90 per share, beating estimates of $1.43, while revenue rose 6.6% year over year to $2.79 billion. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.452 per share, representing a 3.1% annualized yield.

Dearborn Partners LLC purchased a new position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 12,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,613,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cibc World Market Inc. bought a new stake in Hershey during the second quarter valued at about $6,307,000. Satovsky Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Hershey in the second quarter worth about $439,000. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp bought a new position in Hershey in the second quarter worth about $2,101,000. Osmosis Investment Management UK Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the second quarter valued at about $2,230,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the second quarter valued at about $4,716,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on HSY. Evercore set a $225.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group set a $190.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. TD Cowen raised shares of Hershey from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $210.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Bank of America reduced their price target on Hershey from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $191.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, July 31st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $204.78.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 53,195 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,043,150. This trade represents a 2.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hershey Trading Up 1.9%

NYSE HSY opened at $189.92 on Tuesday. Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $161.43 and a 1 year high of $239.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.66. The company has a market capitalization of $38.16 billion, a PE ratio of 25.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.11. The company has a fifty day moving average of $178.57 and a 200 day moving average of $195.40.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 period last year, the firm earned $1.21 EPS. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.360-8.520 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Hershey Company will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.452 per share. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 79.23%.

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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