State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Decreases Stock Holdings in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• The State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its holdings in Hershey Company by 6.3%, selling 3,410 shares and ending the quarter with 50,600 shares valued at $8,654,000.
• Several institutional investors, including Tradewinds Capital Management, have increased their positions in Hershey, with institutional ownership now at 57.96%.
• Hershey has recently announced a quarterly dividend payment of $1.37 per share, representing a yield of 3.1% and a payout ratio of 72.78%.

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D cut its stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 6.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 50,600 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,410 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's holdings in Hershey were worth $8,654,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Hershey by 18,311.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,010,616 shares of the company's stock worth $1,728,460,000 after buying an additional 1,005,127 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Hershey by 6,721.3% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 819,446 shares of the company's stock worth $140,150,000 after buying an additional 807,433 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in Hershey by 38.6% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,628,047 shares of the company's stock worth $275,710,000 after buying an additional 453,428 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Hershey by 7.7% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,991,639 shares of the company's stock worth $853,720,000 after buying an additional 356,249 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Hershey in the first quarter worth $55,269,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Hershey from $173.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on Hershey from $155.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Hershey in a report on Wednesday. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $187.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Hershey from $135.00 to $154.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on Hershey from $175.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $170.83.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief accounting officer owned 2,994 shares in the company, valued at $470,387.34. This represents a 24.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of the firm'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 sale, the insider directly owned 38,068 shares in the company, valued at $6,852,240. The trade was a 3.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 118,311 shares of company stock valued at $20,931,348 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Hershey Stock Up 1.2%

Hershey stock traded up $2.1160 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $181.4760. The stock had a trading volume of 770,477 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,837,286. The company has a market cap of $36.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.10, a PEG ratio of 4.38 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. The business's 50 day moving average price is $176.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $169.08. Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $208.03.

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

Hershey Announces Dividend

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

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.