Hershey Company (The) $HSY Shares Bought by First Trust Advisors LP

Key Points

• First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Hershey by 240%, buying 891,287 shares to own 1,262,671 shares (about 0.62% of the company) valued at roughly $236.2 million, and other large institutions (Norges Bank, Balyasny, Envestnet, Holocene, Citigroup) also added sizable positions.
• Hershey beat quarterly estimates with $1.71 EPS (vs. $1.40 expected) and $3.09B revenue, set FY2026 guidance of 8.200–8.520 EPS, and raised its quarterly dividend to $1.452 (annualized $5.81, ~2.6% yield).
• Sell‑side analysts have an average rating of "Hold" with an average target price of $222.21, while insiders sold about 10,000 shares (~$2.15M) in the last 90 days.

First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 240.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,262,671 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 891,287 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.62% of Hershey worth $236,183,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Hershey during the 2nd quarter valued at $234,386,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the second quarter worth $125,868,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 121.2% in the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,104,299 shares of the company's stock worth $206,559,000 after purchasing an additional 605,048 shares in the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 44.7% during the second quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 1,232,595 shares of the company's stock valued at $204,549,000 after purchasing an additional 380,512 shares during the period. Finally, Citigroup Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 173.7% during the second quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 534,567 shares of the company's stock valued at $88,711,000 after purchasing an additional 339,240 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Rohit Grover sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total transaction of $791,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 34,568 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,814,787.76. This represents a 9.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jason Reiman sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total value of $452,140.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 41,036 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,277,008.52. This represents a 4.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,000 shares of company stock worth $2,153,645. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on HSY. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $185.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley set a $238.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. TD Cowen reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $243.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $222.21.

Hershey Price Performance

NYSE:HSY opened at $225.13 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The business's 50-day moving average price is $207.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $192.04. Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $150.04 and a 52-week high of $239.48. The firm has a market cap of $45.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.87, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.14.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.31. The company had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.97 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 7.55% and a return on equity of 27.90%. Hershey's revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.69 EPS. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.520 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.452 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. This is a positive change from Hershey's previous quarterly dividend of $1.37. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. Hershey's payout ratio is 133.87%.

Hershey Company 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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