Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Has $7.45 Million Stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lowered its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 49.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 39,972 shares of the company's stock after selling 38,478 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund's holdings in Hershey were worth $7,452,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. RWA Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Hershey by 419.0% in the 4th quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC now owns 7,655 shares of the company's stock worth $1,427,000 after buying an additional 6,180 shares in the last quarter. Mengis Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 66.7% in the 4th quarter. Mengis Capital Management Inc. now owns 23,235 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,332,000 after purchasing an additional 9,300 shares in the last quarter. Significant Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,659,000. Diversified LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at about $219,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 483.6% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 139,881 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,079,000 after purchasing an additional 115,912 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total value of $89,938.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $369,681.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total value of $89,938.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $369,681.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total transaction of $278,745.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 38,728 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,196,824.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,453 shares of company stock worth $665,534. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of Hershey stock traded up $1.06 on Wednesday, hitting $188.14. The company had a trading volume of 1,621,744 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,963,497. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $192.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $190.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The company has a market cap of $38.37 billion, a PE ratio of 20.75, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.34. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $178.82 and a 52 week high of $276.88.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.72 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 16.67% and a return on equity of 51.79%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.02 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.91%. This is a boost from Hershey's previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.55%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on HSY shares. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $179.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Hershey from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $235.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $213.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Hershey from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $191.00 to $183.00 in a research note on Monday, February 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $223.33.

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.