Handelsbanken Fonder AB Has $15.39 Million Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lowered its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 3.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 89,967 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,537 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in Hershey were worth $15,387,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of HSY. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 92.5% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 8,815 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,508,000 after purchasing an additional 4,236 shares during the period. MADDEN SECURITIES Corp acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the 1st quarter valued at about $206,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,909 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,011,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares during the period. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 15.8% in the 1st quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,010 shares of the company's stock valued at $173,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the period. Finally, International Private Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 17.0% in the 1st quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,634 shares of the company's stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 238 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, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.11, for a total transaction of $153,025.14. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,994 shares in the company, valued at $470,387.34. The trade was a 24.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.80, for a total value of $5,018,568.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 193,624 shares in the company, valued at $31,134,739.20. This represents a 13.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY traded up $4.28 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $172.33. 2,227,596 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,790,379. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The company's 50 day moving average is $163.38 and its 200 day moving average is $165.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.81, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.29. The Hershey Company has a one year low of $140.13 and a one year high of $208.03.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.15. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. The business had revenue of $2.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.07 EPS. Hershey's quarterly revenue was down 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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 is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.18%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is presently 67.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on HSY shares. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $173.00 to $165.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target 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. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Hershey from $162.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on 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 assigned a hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $158.84.

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.