Rayburn West Financial Services LLC Invests $938,000 in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• Rayburn West Financial Services disclosed a new fourth-quarter position in Hershey, buying 5,152 shares valued at about $938,000.
• Hershey insiders sold shares recently, including Rohit Grover and Jason Reiman, and insiders have sold 10,000 shares worth roughly $2.19 million over the last 90 days.
• The company recently beat earnings expectations, reporting $2.35 EPS on $3.10 billion in revenue, while analysts currently have a consensus Hold rating with an average price target of $218.33.

Rayburn West Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 5,152 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $938,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 146.0% during the 4th quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,476 shares of the company's stock valued at $269,000 after acquiring an additional 876 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 42,750 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,780,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares during the period. West Tower Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $273,000. World Investment Advisors grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 53.5% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 5,485 shares of the company's stock valued at $998,000 after acquiring an additional 1,912 shares during the period. Finally, Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 8,231 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,498,000 after acquiring an additional 525 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Rohit Grover sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total transaction of $791,245.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 34,568 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,814,787.76. This represents a 9.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Jason Reiman sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total value of $452,140.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 41,036 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,277,008.52. This represents a 4.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,000 shares of company stock worth $2,189,090. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on HSY shares. Stephens boosted their price objective on Hershey from $200.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Hershey from $247.00 to $227.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Hershey from $185.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Mizuho boosted their price target on Hershey from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their price target on Hershey from $230.00 to $208.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 4th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $218.33.

Hershey Stock Up 2.1%

NYSE HSY opened at $195.86 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.24. The company has a market capitalization of $39.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.07. Hershey Company has a one year low of $150.04 and a one year high of $239.48. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $204.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $196.91.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.31. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.03 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 28.98% and a net margin of 9.12%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.09 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $1.452 per share. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is currently 108.19%.

About Hershey

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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