Vontobel Holding Ltd. Boosts Holdings in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 8.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,151 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 1,582 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd.'s holdings in Hershey were worth $3,617,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of HSY. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 25.8% during the first quarter. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. now owns 2,562 shares of the company's stock valued at $427,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares during the period. Fort Vancouver Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the first quarter valued at about $34,000. Mather Group LLC. raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 166.3% during the first quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 1,337 shares of the company's stock valued at $229,000 after purchasing an additional 835 shares during the period. Hixon Zuercher LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 15.4% during the first quarter. Hixon Zuercher LLC now owns 3,998 shares of the company's stock valued at $684,000 after purchasing an additional 535 shares during the period. Finally, Kennon Green & Company LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 33.3% during the first quarter. Kennon Green & Company LLC now owns 43,146 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,379,000 after purchasing an additional 10,784 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price 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. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $178.00 to $175.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Citigroup lowered their target price 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. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $167.00 to $155.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on shares of Hershey from $147.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $158.84.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related news, SVP James Turoff sold 1,300 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $227,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 25,321 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,431,175. This trade represents a 4.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.80, for a total transaction of $5,018,568.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 193,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,134,739.20. This trade represents a 13.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 54,107 shares of company stock valued at $9,008,118 over the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of Hershey stock traded down $4.08 on Friday, reaching $173.00. 733,761 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,793,894. Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $208.03. The company has a 50 day moving average of $165.42 and a 200 day moving average of $164.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.05 billion, a PE ratio of 21.33, a PEG ratio of 6.52 and a beta of 0.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.15. Hershey had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 38.70%. The firm 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. The company's revenue was down 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is currently 67.57%.

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.