Hershey Company (The) $HSY Shares Bought by Promethium Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Promethium Advisors LLC increased its stake in Hershey Company by 77.9%, owning 13,375 shares valued at approximately $2.3 million, making it the 22nd largest holding in their investment portfolio.
• Other institutional investors, such as GAMMA Investing LLC and Pacer Advisors Inc., reported massive increases in their holdings, showcasing significant interest in Hershey's stock among hedge funds.
• Hershey's recent financial results exceeded analyst expectations, with earnings per share (EPS) of $1.21 against a forecast of $0.98, alongside a year-over-year revenue increase of 26.0%.

Promethium Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 77.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,375 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,857 shares during the quarter. Hershey makes up approximately 1.5% of Promethium Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Promethium Advisors LLC's holdings in Hershey were worth $2,288,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. AXA S.A. increased its position in Hershey by 17.6% during the 4th quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 57,120 shares of the company's stock worth $9,673,000 after purchasing an additional 8,537 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its position in Hershey by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 91,233 shares of the company's stock worth $15,451,000 after purchasing an additional 1,758 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth about $314,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its position in Hershey by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 8,292 shares of the company's stock worth $1,404,000 after purchasing an additional 1,045 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Concorde Financial Corp grew its holdings in Hershey by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Concorde Financial Corp now owns 16,536 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,800,000 after buying an additional 1,308 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $240,120.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 38,068 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,852,240. The trade was a 3.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP James Turoff sold 1,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $227,500.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 25,321 shares in the company, valued at $4,431,175. This trade represents a 4.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 86,127 shares of company stock valued at $15,759,755. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HSY has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays lifted their price target on Hershey from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Hershey from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Hershey from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on Hershey from $155.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Hershey from $135.00 to $154.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $170.83.

Hershey Stock Up 0.3%

Hershey stock traded up $0.58 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $185.27. 733,703 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,314,900. The company's fifty day moving average price is $178.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $171.05. The company has a market cap of $37.56 billion, a PE ratio of 24.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 0.89. Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $208.03.

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

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. Hershey's payout ratio is 72.78%.

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.