Mufg Securities Americas Inc. Invests $369,000 in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Mufg Securities Americas Inc. acquired a new position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,181 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $369,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in HSY. Capital International Investors grew its position in shares of Hershey by 31.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,460,147 shares of the company's stock worth $2,110,126,000 after buying an additional 2,980,997 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth about $80,978,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Hershey by 5.6% in 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. Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,902,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Hershey by 10.8% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,578,957 shares of the company's stock valued at $267,396,000 after purchasing an additional 154,238 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Stock Down 3.2%

HSY stock opened at $158.49 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $32.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.54, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $209.65. The company's 50-day moving average price is $166.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $167.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. The firm's revenue was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.07 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

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 given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HSY has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Hershey from $173.00 to $165.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Barclays increased their price objective on Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded Hershey from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $161.40.

Hershey Company 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.

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