Hershey Company (The) $HSY Shares Sold by Generali Asset Management SPA SGR

Key Points

• Generali Asset Management cut its Hershey stake by 39.6% in the fourth quarter, leaving it with 10,254 shares valued at about $1.87 million.
• Hershey reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $2.35 and revenue of $3.10 billion, both above analyst estimates, with revenue up 10.7% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.452 per share to be paid June 15, implying an annualized yield of 3.1%, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with an average target price of $218.33.

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR trimmed its holdings in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 39.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,254 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,709 shares during the period. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR's holdings in Hershey were worth $1,866,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. CORDA Investment Management LLC. increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. CORDA Investment Management LLC. now owns 118,139 shares of the company's stock worth $21,499,000 after purchasing an additional 4,393 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 26.4% during the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,774 shares of the company's stock worth $1,415,000 after purchasing an additional 1,624 shares in the last quarter. Indivisible Partners purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter worth approximately $365,000. Swedbank AB increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 146,985 shares of the company's stock worth $26,748,000 after purchasing an additional 1,456 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 314,060 shares of the company's stock worth $57,288,000 after purchasing an additional 13,965 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Down 0.7%

HSY stock opened at $185.83 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.61, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.24. Hershey Company has a one year low of $150.04 and a one year high of $239.48. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $207.82 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $196.73.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.31. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.03 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 9.12% and a return on equity of 28.98%. Hershey's revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.09 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.452 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 108.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSY has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Zacks Research cut shares of Hershey from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $211.00 to $204.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $185.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $247.00 to $227.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $218.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, SVP Jason Reiman sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total transaction of $452,140.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 41,036 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,277,008.52. This trade represents a 4.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Rohit Grover sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 34,568 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,814,787.76. This represents a 9.19% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 10,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,189,090 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

About Hershey

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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