NFJ Investment Group LLC Makes New $82.25 Million Investment in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• NFJ Investment Group acquired 468,818 Hershey shares valued at approximately $82.25 million, making Hershey its seventh-largest holding and representing about 0.23% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating on Hershey, with an average price target of $203.61; recent targets range from $190 to $225.
• Hershey exceeded quarterly expectations with $1.90 earnings per share and $2.79 billion in revenue, while declaring a quarterly dividend of $1.452, equivalent to a 3.1% annualized yield.

NFJ Investment Group LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 468,818 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $82,254,000. Hershey accounts for about 2.8% of NFJ Investment Group LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. NFJ Investment Group LLC owned approximately 0.23% of Hershey as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Reflection Asset Management bought a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc bought a new stake in Hershey during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Hershey during the third quarter worth $26,000. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on HSY. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $191.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, July 31st. Evercore set a $225.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. DA Davidson set a $190.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Barclays cut their price target on Hershey from $208.00 to $200.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $190.00 price objective on Hershey in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $203.61.

Hershey Price Performance

HSY opened at $188.71 on Friday. Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $161.43 and a 1 year high of $239.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.66. The company has a market capitalization of $37.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.11. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $178.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $195.57.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.47. Hershey had a net margin of 12.24% and a return on equity of 31.92%. The company had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.63 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.21 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.360-8.520 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Hershey Company will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a $1.452 dividend. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Hershey's payout ratio is presently 79.37%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 53,195 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,043,150. This trade represents a 2.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hershey Company 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.

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