Tidal Investments LLC Grows Stock Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Tidal Investments LLC increased its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 55.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,959 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 4,599 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC's holdings in Hershey were worth $2,195,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State of Wyoming boosted its holdings in Hershey by 96.3% in the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 420 shares of the company's stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the period. Studio Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Hershey by 52.8% in the 4th quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC now owns 3,173 shares of the company's stock valued at $537,000 after purchasing an additional 1,096 shares during the period. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC boosted its holdings in Hershey by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC now owns 2,541 shares of the company's stock valued at $430,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Hershey by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC now owns 19,631 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,324,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Finally, Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC bought a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at $558,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Hershey from $162.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $167.00 to $155.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $147.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Bernstein Bank lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $162.15.

Hershey Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE HSY traded down $1.48 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $156.76. The stock had a trading volume of 318,723 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,784,939. The business's 50 day moving average is $164.41 and its 200-day moving average is $166.70. The company has a market cap of $31.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.38, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week 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.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. The business's revenue was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.07 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.50%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is presently 67.57%.

Hershey Company 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.