Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) Stock Position Lifted by Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 1,640.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 24,260 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 22,866 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Hershey were worth $4,149,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.11, for a total value 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.80, for a total value of $5,018,568.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 193,624 shares in the company, valued at $31,134,739.20. This represents a 13.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on HSY. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $178.00 to $175.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group cut their target price on Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. DA Davidson raised their price target on Hershey from $162.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $158.84.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY traded up $0.46 during trading on Friday, hitting $167.46. The company had a trading volume of 381,156 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,847,275. Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $208.03. The business's 50-day moving average is $164.65 and its 200 day moving average is $165.24. The company has a market cap of $33.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.65, a PEG ratio of 6.12 and a beta of 0.29. 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 issued its 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. Hershey had a return on equity of 38.70% and a net margin of 15.32%. The business had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.07 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.27%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. Hershey's payout ratio is 67.57%.

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.