Hershey Company (The) $HSY Stock Position Lifted by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Key Points

• Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its Hershey stake by 24.9% in the fourth quarter, buying 15,231 more shares and lifting its total holdings to 76,444 shares valued at about $13.9 million.
• Insider selling has continued at Hershey, with CFO Steven E. Voskuil and SVP Jason Reiman both selling shares in recent months; insiders sold 8,500 shares total over the last three months.
• Hershey beat quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $2.35 EPS on $3.10 billion in revenue, while also declaring a quarterly dividend of $1.452 per share, yielding about 3.0%.

Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 24.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 76,444 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 15,231 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in Hershey were worth $13,911,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Hershey during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Close Asset Management Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 339.3% in the 3rd quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd now owns 246 shares of the company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.10, for a total value of $291,150.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 57,695 shares in the company, valued at $11,198,599.50. This trade represents a 2.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Jason Reiman sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total value of $452,140.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 41,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,277,008.52. This represents a 4.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 8,500 shares of company stock worth $1,859,600 in the last three months. 0.08% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hershey Stock Down 0.2%

HSY opened at $190.49 on Friday. Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $150.04 and a 12 month high of $239.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market cap of $38.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.07. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $200.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $197.51.

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

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a $1.452 dividend. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 108.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HSY has been the topic of several recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on Hershey from $212.00 to $200.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 30th. Zacks Research downgraded Hershey from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Hershey from $230.00 to $215.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Hershey from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Hershey from $185.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hershey currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $217.78.

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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