Raymond James Financial Inc. Sells 6,356 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. reduced its stake in Hershey Company by 1.3%, owning approximately 471,814 shares worth $80.69 million after selling 6,356 shares.
• Hershey recently reported a quarterly EPS of $1.21, exceeding analysts’ expectations of $0.98, and experienced a 26% year-over-year revenue growth with earnings structured around $2.61 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.37 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 3.0% with a payout ratio of 72.78%.

Raymond James Financial Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 1.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 471,814 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,356 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.23% of Hershey worth $80,694,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 129.5% during the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fort Vancouver Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 5,000 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $900,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 61,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,037,420. The trade was a 7.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.11, for a total value of $153,025.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 2,994 shares in the company, valued at $470,387.34. The trade was a 24.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 118,311 shares of company stock valued at $20,931,348 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Hershey Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of Hershey stock traded up $2.1160 on Friday, reaching $181.4760. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,110,298 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,682,701. The company has a market capitalization of $36.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.10, a P/E/G ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.27. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $176.26 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $169.34. Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $208.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 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 business had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.27 EPS. The company'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. Equities analysts anticipate that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on HSY shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Hershey from $135.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on Hershey from $178.00 to $175.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays upped their target price on Hershey from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. DA Davidson upped their target price on Hershey from $171.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on Hershey from $155.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $170.83.

Hershey 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.