Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co Invests $6.83 Million in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co. bought 38,900 Hershey shares worth approximately $6.83 million, while institutional investors collectively own 57.96% of the stock.
• Analysts maintain a broadly cautious view, with seven Buy ratings and 16 Holds; Hershey’s average rating is “Hold” and its average price target is $204.78.
• Hershey exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $1.90 in EPS and $2.79 billion in revenue, and declared a quarterly dividend of $1.452 per share, equivalent to a 3.1% yield.

Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co purchased a new position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 38,900 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,825,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc bought a new stake in shares of Hershey in the second quarter worth about $26,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Hershey during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on HSY shares. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $215.00 to $180.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Barclays reduced their target price on Hershey from $208.00 to $200.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. UBS Group boosted their price target on Hershey from $190.00 to $198.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Hershey from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $249.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $204.78.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 53,195 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,043,150. This represents a 2.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hershey Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $186.27 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $37.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.66. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $178.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $195.49. Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $161.43 and a 1 year high of $239.48.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.63 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 31.92% and a net margin of 12.24%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.21 earnings per share. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.360-8.520 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a dividend of $1.452 per share. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 79.37%.

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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