Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) had its price objective boosted by Morgan Stanley from $173.00 to $189.00 in a research note published on Thursday morning, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.
A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on HSY. Citigroup cut their price target on Hershey from $173.00 to $165.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wall Street Zen lowered Hershey from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Sunday, July 6th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Hershey from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on Hershey from $147.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued 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 $168.37.
View Our Latest Analysis on HSY
Hershey Stock Performance
NYSE:HSY traded up $2.57 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $188.70. 2,072,840 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,902,214. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $170.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $166.21. Hershey has a 1 year low of $140.13 and a 1 year high of $208.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.06, a P/E/G ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.
Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 37.36% and a net margin of 13.54%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.27 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Hershey will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Hershey Dividend Announcement
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.78%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other Hershey news, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 of the company's stock, valued at $6,852,240. The trade was a 3.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owned 61,319 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,037,420. This represents a 7.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 118,311 shares of company stock valued at $20,931,348 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.
Institutional Trading of Hershey
Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Capital International Investors boosted its position in Hershey by 31.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,460,147 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,110,126,000 after buying an additional 2,980,997 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Hershey by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,991,639 shares of the company's stock valued at $853,720,000 after purchasing an additional 356,249 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Hershey by 1.3% during the 4th 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 boosted its stake in Hershey by 25.4% in the 1st 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 during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in 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 valued at $275,710,000 after buying an additional 453,428 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
About Hershey
(
Get Free Report)
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.
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