Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Sells 7,380 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. reduced its Hershey stake by 2.1% in the first quarter, selling 7,380 shares and ending with 337,770 shares valued at about $70.2 million.
• Hershey’s latest earnings beat expectations, reporting $2.35 EPS on $3.10 billion in revenue, while quarterly revenue rose 10.7% year over year.
• Analysts remain cautious overall: the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” with an average price target of $214.78, even though several firms still rate it a Buy.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 2.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 337,770 shares of the company's stock after selling 7,380 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned approximately 0.17% of Hershey worth $70,219,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Syon Capital LLC lifted its position in Hershey by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 3,020 shares of the company's stock worth $550,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Haverford Trust Co increased its position in shares of Hershey by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 6,796 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,237,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Hershey by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,561 shares of the company's stock worth $466,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC raised its holdings in Hershey by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 8,034 shares of the company's stock worth $1,462,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC boosted its position in Hershey by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 3,070 shares of the company's stock valued at $559,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.43, for a total value of $260,145.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 54,695 shares in the company, valued at $9,485,753.85. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on HSY. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $240.00 price target on Hershey in a research report on Friday, May 1st. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Hershey from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $210.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $247.00 to $227.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $230.00 to $215.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $214.78.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HSY traded up $2.50 during trading on Friday, reaching $174.15. 2,420,439 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,286,708. Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $161.29 and a 12 month high of $239.48. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $183.55 and a 200-day moving average price of $197.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The firm has a market cap of $35.32 billion, a PE ratio of 32.43, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.11.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.31. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.03 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 28.98% and a net margin of 9.12%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.09 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 8.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were given a dividend of $1.452 per share. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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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