ING Groep NV Sells 29,542 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• ING Groep NV sharply reduced its Hershey stake, cutting holdings by 75.7% in the fourth quarter and selling 29,542 shares. The fund now owns 9,494 shares valued at about $1.73 million.
• Hershey’s latest quarterly results beat expectations, with EPS of $2.35 versus $2.04 expected and revenue of $3.10 billion, up 10.7% year over year. The company also maintained strong profitability, reporting a 28.98% return on equity.
• The stock offers a 3.3% dividend yield, with a quarterly payout of $1.452 scheduled for June 15. However, analysts are cautious overall, with a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $218.06.

ING Groep NV cut its holdings in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 75.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,494 shares of the company's stock after selling 29,542 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV's holdings in Hershey were worth $1,728,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Capital International Inc. CA grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 13.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Inc. CA now owns 85,393 shares of the company's stock worth $15,540,000 after purchasing an additional 10,233 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 9,106,431 shares of the company's stock worth $1,657,189,000 after purchasing an additional 169,660 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 20.7% in the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 2,555 shares of the company's stock worth $437,000 after purchasing an additional 438 shares during the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter worth about $137,000. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 88.0% in the fourth quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 106,649 shares of the company's stock worth $19,408,000 after purchasing an additional 49,927 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Performance

Hershey stock opened at $175.72 on Wednesday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $193.07 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $198.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.24. The stock has a market cap of $35.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.72, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.09. Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $160.07 and a fifty-two week high of $239.48.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 in the previous year, the firm posted $2.09 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a $1.452 dividend. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. Hershey's payout ratio is currently 108.19%.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business'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 of the company's stock, valued at $11,198,599.50. The trade was a 2.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research cut Hershey from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. DA Davidson cut their target price on Hershey from $230.00 to $208.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Hershey from $211.00 to $204.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. UBS Group cut their price objective on Hershey from $215.00 to $200.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $240.00 price objective on Hershey in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $218.06.

Hershey 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding HSY? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.