Inscription Capital LLC Makes New Investment in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Inscription Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 8,057 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,378,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp lifted its holdings in Hershey by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp now owns 4,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $762,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,768 shares of the company's stock valued at $473,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A boosted its holdings in Hershey by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A now owns 3,240 shares of the company's stock worth $549,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. increased its stake in Hershey by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 5,546 shares of the company's stock worth $939,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 42.5% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 238 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of HSY opened at $170.40 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The business has a fifty day moving average of $164.00 and a 200 day moving average of $165.57. The company has a market cap of $34.52 billion, a PE ratio of 15.63, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.29. The Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $140.13 and a 52-week high of $208.03.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.81 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. The business's revenue was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.07 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.22%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is 67.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on HSY shares. Mizuho decreased their target price on Hershey from $167.00 to $155.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $178.00 to $175.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hershey presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $158.84.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.80, for a total value of $5,018,568.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 193,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at $31,134,739.20. The trade was a 13.88% decrease in their position. 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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 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. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

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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