Marshall Financial Group LLC Acquires 1,652 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Marshall Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 31.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,829 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 1,652 shares during the period. Marshall Financial Group LLC's holdings in Hershey were worth $1,168,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Montag & Caldwell LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Hershey during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on shares of Hershey from $147.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group lowered their target price on Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Hershey from $183.00 to $177.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $158.84.

Hershey Price Performance

HSY stock traded down $3.06 during trading on Friday, hitting $169.06. The stock had a trading volume of 1,834,351 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,793,368. The Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $208.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.51, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.29. The company's 50-day moving average price is $163.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $165.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.64.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.07 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.57%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at approximately $31,134,739.20. This trade represents a 13.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.11, for a total transaction of $153,025.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $470,387.34. This trade represents a 24.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.28% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.