Hershey Company (The) $HSY Shares Sold by Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA

Key Points

• Massachusetts Financial Services trimmed its stake in Hershey by 4.2%, selling 31,002 shares in Q4 and now holds 705,533 shares worth about $128.4M, while insiders have sold roughly 10,000 shares (~$2.2M) over the past three months.
• Hershey beat quarterly estimates with $1.71 EPS (vs. $1.40) and $3.09B revenue (vs. $2.97B), set FY2026 EPS guidance of 8.20–8.52, and raised the quarterly dividend to $1.452 (annualized $5.81, yield 2.9%) despite a high payout ratio of 133.87%.
• Analysts are mixed: the consensus rating is Hold with an average price target of $222.21, amid a range of recent target changes from firms like Morgan Stanley, Stephens, Barclays and UBS.

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lowered its position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 4.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 705,533 shares of the company's stock after selling 31,002 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned about 0.35% of Hershey worth $128,393,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 1,537.5% in the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 131 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the third quarter valued at about $35,000. Park Place Capital Corp bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the third quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, West Branch Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 107.4% during the third quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 224 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on HSY shares. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $238.00 to $247.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $236.00 to $215.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eighteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $222.21.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Rohit Grover sold 3,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total value of $791,245.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 34,568 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,814,787.76. This trade represents a 9.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jason Reiman sold 2,000 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total value of $452,140.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 41,036 shares in the company, valued at $9,277,008.52. This represents a 4.65% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 10,000 shares of company stock worth $2,195,945. 0.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of Hershey stock opened at $198.02 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The company's 50-day moving average price is $218.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $196.81. Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $150.04 and a 52 week high of $239.48. The stock has a market cap of $40.14 billion, a PE ratio of 45.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.18.

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

Hershey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were given a $1.452 dividend. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. This is a boost from Hershey's previous quarterly dividend of $1.37. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 17th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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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