Precedent Wealth Partners LLC Boosts Stock Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Precedent Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 41.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,926 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,743 shares during the period. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC's holdings in Hershey were worth $1,014,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC increased its stake in Hershey by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC now owns 46,708 shares of the company's stock worth $7,910,000 after acquiring an additional 3,578 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Hershey by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 33,996 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,757,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Hershey by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 86,625 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,879,000 after purchasing an additional 4,596 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its stake in Hershey by 12.0% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 2,626 shares of the company's stock worth $445,000 after buying an additional 282 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valeo Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 11,567 shares of the company's stock worth $1,959,000 after buying an additional 360 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Hershey Stock Up 0.8%

Hershey stock traded up $1.28 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $170.40. The company had a trading volume of 1,553,983 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,795,003. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $140.13 and a 12 month high of $208.03. The company has a market capitalization of $34.52 billion, a PE ratio of 15.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.29. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $163.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $165.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

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

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.22%. Hershey's payout ratio is currently 67.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on HSY shares. DA Davidson increased their target price on Hershey from $162.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Hershey from $173.00 to $165.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Hershey from $167.00 to $155.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. UBS Group cut their target price on Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted 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. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $158.84.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other Hershey news, 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 193,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,134,739.20. The trade was a 13.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $470,387.34. The trade was a 24.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

About Hershey

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.