Hershey Company (The) $HSY Shares Purchased by Gabelli Funds LLC

Key Points

• Gabelli Funds LLC significantly increased its stake in Hershey Company by 205.9%, acquiring an additional 8,750 shares, bringing its total holdings to 13,000 shares valued at approximately $2.22 million.
• Hershey's CEO, Michele Buck, sold 19,290 shares at an average price of $194, leading to a 9.06% decrease in her ownership.
• The company reported a quarterly revenue of $2.61 billion, surpassing analysts' expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $1.37 per share, yielding 3.0%.

Gabelli Funds LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 205.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,000 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 8,750 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC's holdings in Hershey were worth $2,223,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in HSY. Kennon Green & Company LLC increased its holdings in Hershey by 33.3% in the 1st quarter. Kennon Green & Company LLC now owns 43,146 shares of the company's stock worth $7,379,000 after acquiring an additional 10,784 shares in the last quarter. William Allan Corp increased its stake in Hershey by 173.1% during the 1st quarter. William Allan Corp now owns 18,593 shares of the company's stock worth $3,180,000 after buying an additional 11,785 shares in the last quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 9.5% in the first quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 31,925 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,460,000 after acquiring an additional 2,757 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 8.1% in the first quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 18,625 shares of the company's stock worth $3,186,000 after acquiring an additional 1,390 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the first quarter worth approximately $55,269,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HSY has been the topic of a number of research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on Hershey from $155.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Hershey from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Hershey currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $170.83.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other news, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $240,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 38,068 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,852,240. The trade was a 3.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $3,472,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 193,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $34,852,320. This trade represents a 9.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 86,127 shares of company stock valued at $15,759,755. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

Hershey Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE HSY traded down $0.82 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $184.96. 610,178 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,807,189. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 0.89. Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $208.03. The company has a market cap of $37.50 billion, a PE ratio of 24.56, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.27. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $177.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $170.76.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.23. Hershey had a return on equity of 37.36% and a net margin of 13.54%.The firm had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.27 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.809-5.997 EPS. Research analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

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

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.