Machina Capital S.A.S. Acquires Shares of 2,843 Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY)

Key Points

• Machina Capital S.A.S. has purchased 2,843 shares of Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY), valued at approximately $486,000, reflecting institutional interest in the company.
• Hershey's recent quarterly earnings showed an EPS of $2.09, surpassing estimates, although revenue decreased by 13.8% year-over-year.
• The company announced a $1.37 dividend per share, representing an annualized yield of 2.92%, with a payout ratio currently at 67.57%.

Machina Capital S.A.S. bought a new position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 2,843 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $486,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co grew its position in Hershey by 4.1% during the first quarter. W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co now owns 34,129 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,837,000 after purchasing an additional 1,355 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.0% in the first quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 127,895 shares of the company's stock worth $21,874,000 after buying an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 3.4% in the first quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 125,763 shares of the company's stock worth $21,509,000 after buying an additional 4,150 shares during the last quarter. Ignite Planners LLC raised its stake in Hershey by 5.2% during the 1st quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 1,278 shares of the company's stock valued at $214,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HighPoint Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in Hershey by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 4,237 shares of the company's stock valued at $699,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.80, for a total value of $5,018,568.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 193,624 shares in the company, valued at $31,134,739.20. This trade represents a 13.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $240,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 38,068 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,852,240. This represents a 3.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 99,021 shares of company stock worth $17,189,088 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

Hershey Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of Hershey stock traded down $0.93 on Monday, reaching $186.19. 408,179 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,857,487. The company has a market capitalization of $37.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.05 and a beta of 0.30. Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $208.03. The firm's 50-day moving average is $167.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $165.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.59.

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

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. Hershey's payout ratio is 67.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on HSY. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target 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. UBS Group reduced their price target 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. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on shares of Hershey from $147.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Hershey from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, DA Davidson increased their price target 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. Six analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $160.68.

Hershey 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.