Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) Stake Lowered by Envestnet Asset Management Inc.

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 37.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 412,559 shares of the company's stock after selling 243,238 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned about 0.20% of Hershey worth $70,560,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $18,273,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 56,346 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,542,000 after purchasing an additional 5,079 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 19,349 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,277,000 after purchasing an additional 1,222 shares during the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. boosted its holdings in Hershey by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 9,301 shares of the company's stock worth $1,575,000 after purchasing an additional 286 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in Hershey by 34.6% during the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,328 shares of the company's stock worth $902,000 after buying an additional 1,370 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on HSY shares. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price 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. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $183.00 to $177.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of Hershey from $147.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $158.84.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hershey news, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $3,375,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 193,624 shares in the company, valued at $33,884,200. The trade was a 9.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.11, for a total transaction of $153,025.14. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,994 shares in the company, valued at $470,387.34. This represents a 24.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 54,107 shares of company stock valued at $9,008,118. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hershey Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of HSY stock opened at $164.82 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $33.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.08 and a beta of 0.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $165.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $164.76. Hershey Company has a one year low of $140.13 and a one year high of $208.03.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.15. Hershey had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 38.70%. The business had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.07 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th were paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is 67.57%.

Hershey Company 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.

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