Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. Raises Holdings in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. increased its position in Hershey Company by 83.0%, owning 24,759 shares valued at approximately $4.24 million after purchasing an additional 11,228 shares in the first quarter.
• Hershey reported earnings per share of $1.21 for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' estimates of $0.98, and showed a 26.0% increase in revenue compared to last year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.37, with a dividend yield of 3.1%, which will be paid to investors of record on August 15th.

Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. increased its position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 83.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 24,759 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 11,228 shares during the period. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P.'s holdings in Hershey were worth $4,235,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,991,639 shares of the company's stock valued at $853,720,000 after buying an additional 356,249 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 38.6% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,628,047 shares of the company's stock valued at $275,710,000 after buying an additional 453,428 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,578,957 shares of the company's stock valued at $267,396,000 after buying an additional 154,238 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 13.7% in the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,096,767 shares of the company's stock valued at $185,743,000 after purchasing an additional 132,019 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,020,569 shares of the company's stock valued at $174,536,000 after purchasing an additional 17,311 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on HSY. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on Hershey from $155.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Hershey from $135.00 to $154.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Hershey in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $187.00 price target for the company. UBS Group cut their price target on Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Hershey from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $170.83.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of Hershey stock traded down $2.33 on Thursday, hitting $179.26. 1,067,388 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,843,765. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $175.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $168.87. Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $140.13 and a 1-year high of $208.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

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

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is 72.78%.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $900,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 61,319 shares in the company, valued at $11,037,420. This represents a 7.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $240,120.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 38,068 shares in the company, valued at $6,852,240. This represents a 3.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 118,311 shares of company stock valued at $20,931,348 over the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.