Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) Shares Sold by Wedbush Securities Inc.

Key Points

• Wedbush Securities Inc. reduced its stake in Hershey Company by 25.9%, owning 4,554 shares valued at approximately $779,000 after selling 1,595 shares in the first quarter.
• Multiple analysts have adjusted their price targets for Hershey, with Piper Sandler raising it to $145.00 while others reduced their estimations, reflecting mixed sentiment around the stock.
• CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares at an average price of $185.00, indicating a 9.06% decrease in her position, amidst notable insider transactions totaling over $17 million in the past 90 days.

Wedbush Securities Inc. decreased its stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 25.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,554 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,595 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc.'s holdings in Hershey were worth $779,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS raised its position in Hershey by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 127,895 shares of the company's stock worth $21,874,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH increased its position in shares of Hershey by 3.4% in the first quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 125,763 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,509,000 after acquiring an additional 4,150 shares during the period. Ignite Planners LLC increased its position in shares of Hershey by 5.2% in the first quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 1,278 shares of the company's stock valued at $214,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC increased its position in shares of Hershey by 3.4% in the first quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 4,237 shares of the company's stock valued at $699,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. Finally, Gries Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey in the first quarter valued at about $1,330,000. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY traded down $1.76 during trading on Monday, reaching $185.36. The company had a trading volume of 818,299 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,860,503. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.55 billion, a PE ratio of 22.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.05 and a beta of 0.30. Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $208.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $167.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $165.19.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.81 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 38.70% and a net margin of 15.32%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.07 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is currently 67.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HSY has been the topic of a number of research reports. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Hershey from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Hershey from $162.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Hershey from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 6th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $160.68.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.11, for a total value of $153,025.14. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $470,387.34. The trade was a 24.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $240,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 38,068 shares in the company, valued at $6,852,240. The trade was a 3.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 99,021 shares of company stock worth $17,189,088 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

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.