Wells Fargo & Company Increases Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Price Target to $154.00

Key Points

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Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) had its price objective boosted by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $135.00 to $154.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "underweight" rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price target would suggest a potential downside of 18.39% from the company's current price.

HSY has been the topic of several other research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $155.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $173.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $178.00 to $175.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $168.37.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY traded up $2.57 during trading on Thursday, reaching $188.70. 2,072,840 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,902,214. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $170.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $166.11. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.23 billion, a PE ratio of 25.06, a P/E/G ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.30. Hershey has a 52-week low of $140.13 and a 52-week high of $208.03.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.23. Hershey had a net margin of 13.54% and a return on equity of 37.36%. The firm had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.27 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Hershey will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In related 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,994 shares in the company, valued at $470,387.34. The trade was a 24.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 5,000 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $900,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 61,319 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,037,420. The trade was a 7.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 118,311 shares of company stock valued at $20,931,348 over the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hershey

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Hershey by 31.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,460,147 shares of the company's stock worth $2,110,126,000 after purchasing an additional 2,980,997 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Hershey by 7.7% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,991,639 shares of the company's stock worth $853,720,000 after purchasing an additional 356,249 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Hershey by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,801,145 shares of the company's stock worth $642,139,000 after purchasing an additional 47,394 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in Hershey by 25.4% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,753,077 shares of the company's stock worth $470,858,000 after purchasing an additional 557,056 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in Hershey by 38.6% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.