Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 30,215 Shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. cut its stake in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 43.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 38,850 shares of the company's stock after selling 30,215 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Hershey were worth $6,645,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Montag & Caldwell LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Hershey during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Hershey Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of Hershey stock traded up $1.98 on Friday, reaching $171.70. The company had a trading volume of 4,188,543 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,800,969. The firm has a market cap of $34.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.17, a P/E/G ratio of 6.20 and a beta of 0.29. 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 firm's 50-day moving average price is $164.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $165.57. Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $140.13 and a 1 year high of $208.03.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $2.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.07 earnings per share. Hershey's quarterly revenue was down 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.19%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.57%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.80, for a total transaction 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 approximately $31,134,739.20. The trade was a 13.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of the firm'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 directly owns 2,994 shares in the company, valued at $470,387.34. This represents a 24.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on HSY shares. Barclays lifted their target price on Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $162.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research 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 for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $178.00 to $175.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $158.84.

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.