Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) Shares Acquired by Benjamin Edwards Inc.

Key Points

• Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its holdings in Hershey Company by 8.3% during the first quarter, now owning 98,835 shares valued at approximately $16.9 million.
• Analysts have revised Hershey's price targets, with Bank of America raising it to $208 and others adjusting their targets, resulting in a consensus rating of "Hold".
• Hershey announced a $1.37 quarterly dividend, representing a 3.0% yield, with a payout ratio of 72.78% to shareholders of record.

Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 8.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 98,835 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 7,602 shares during the quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc.'s holdings in Hershey were worth $16,904,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Montag & Caldwell LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Tradewinds Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey by 129.5% in the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSY has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Bank of America upped their price target on Hershey from $175.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. DA Davidson upped their price target on Hershey from $171.00 to $188.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Hershey from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on Hershey from $178.00 to $175.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $169.68.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.80, for a total transaction of $5,018,568.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 193,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,134,739.20. This trade represents a 13.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $240,120.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 38,068 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,852,240. The trade was a 3.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 118,311 shares of company stock valued at $20,931,348. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Hershey Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $184.21 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $37.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.46, a PEG ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $140.13 and a 12-month high of $208.03. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $173.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $167.31.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 37.36% and a net margin of 13.54%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.27 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.78%.

About Hershey

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.

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