Simon Quick Advisors LLC Invests $331,000 in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Simon Quick Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 1,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $331,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC grew its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 3,578 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 33,996 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,757,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Hershey by 5.6% in 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. Bogart Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 1,668 shares of the company's stock valued at $282,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in shares of Hershey by 12.0% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 2,626 shares of the company's stock worth $445,000 after acquiring an additional 282 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on HSY shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Mizuho reduced their price target on Hershey from $167.00 to $155.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $183.00 to $177.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have issued a hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $158.84.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.80, for a total transaction of $5,018,568.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 193,624 shares in the company, valued at $31,134,739.20. The trade was a 13.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.11, for a total value of $153,025.14. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly 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. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Hershey Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of HSY traded up $1.53 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $170.65. 194,433 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,789,820. The Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $208.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $163.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of $165.62. The stock has a market cap of $34.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.63, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.29.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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. The company's quarterly revenue was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.21%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.57%.

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.