Nomura Holdings Inc. Has $797,000 Stock Holdings in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• Nomura Holdings Inc. significantly reduced its stake in Hershey Company by 59.5%, now owning only 4,659 shares valued at approximately $797,000 after selling 6,857 shares.
• The Hershey Company reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.21, surpassing estimates, with total revenue reaching $2.61 billion, marking a 26% increase year-over-year.
• A quarterly dividend of $1.37 has been declared by Hershey, reflecting a dividend yield of 3.0%, with an ex-dividend date set for August 15th.

Nomura Holdings Inc. decreased its holdings in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 59.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,659 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,857 shares during the quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Hershey were worth $797,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 18,311.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,010,616 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,728,460,000 after purchasing an additional 1,005,127 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Hershey by 6,721.3% during the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 819,446 shares of the company's stock worth $140,150,000 after buying an additional 807,433 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 38.6% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,628,047 shares of the company's stock valued at $275,710,000 after acquiring an additional 453,428 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Hershey by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,991,639 shares of the company's stock valued at $853,720,000 after buying an additional 356,249 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the 1st quarter valued at $55,269,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In related news, SVP James Turoff sold 1,300 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total transaction of $227,500.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 25,321 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,431,175. The trade was a 4.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 5,000 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $900,000.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 61,319 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,037,420. The trade was a 7.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 86,127 shares of company stock worth $15,759,755. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of Hershey stock traded up $1.51 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $186.99. The company's stock had a trading volume of 922,454 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,795,986. Hershey Company has a one year low of $140.13 and a one year high of $208.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $179.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $171.29. The stock has a market cap of $37.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.81, a P/E/G ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.27.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.23. Hershey had a net margin of 13.54% and a return on equity of 37.36%. The company had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.27 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.809-5.997 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on HSY shares. Barclays lifted their target price on Hershey from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Hershey from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Hershey from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. DA Davidson boosted their target price on Hershey from $171.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Hershey from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $170.83.

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.