Woodstock Corp Raises Stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Woodstock Corp grew its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 89.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,072 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,176 shares during the quarter. Woodstock Corp's holdings in Hershey were worth $2,236,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 31.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,460,147 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,110,126,000 after acquiring an additional 2,980,997 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 18,311.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,010,616 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,728,460,000 after purchasing an additional 1,005,127 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at about $80,978,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 38.6% in 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 worth $275,710,000 after purchasing an additional 453,428 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,635,390 shares of the company's stock valued at $785,003,000 after purchasing an additional 247,675 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE HSY traded down $1.62 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $161.46. The stock had a trading volume of 1,114,185 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,778,460. The Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $140.13 and a 52-week high of $208.03. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $163.66 and a 200 day moving average of $166.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market cap of $32.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.15. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.07 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that The 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 will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.39%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is currently 67.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $167.00 to $155.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on Hershey from $147.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, DA Davidson increased their price objective on Hershey from $162.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $158.84.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.11, for a total value of $153,025.14. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,994 shares in the company, valued at $470,387.34. This trade represents a 24.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 193,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,134,739.20. This trade represents a 13.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.