The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Sold by Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC

Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 57.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,198 shares of the company's stock after selling 16,564 shares during the quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Hershey were worth $2,274,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA lifted its holdings in Hershey by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 754 shares of the company's stock valued at $141,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its stake in Hershey by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 5,258 shares of the company's stock worth $1,052,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 5,839 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,089,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Hershey by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,428 shares of the company's stock worth $272,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Hershey by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,138 shares of the company's stock worth $212,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on HSY shares. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Hershey from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $235.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $179.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $213.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $212.78.

Hershey Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of HSY traded up $2.18 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $195.88. The stock had a trading volume of 2,341,478 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,974,704. The business's fifty day moving average is $191.80 and its 200 day moving average is $190.68. The firm has a market cap of $39.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.33. The Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $178.82 and a 52-week high of $276.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.52.

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

Hershey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a $1.37 dividend. This is a positive change from Hershey's previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.80%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.55%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total value of $278,745.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 38,728 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,196,824.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total value of $278,745.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 38,728 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,196,824.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total transaction of $89,938.62. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,862 shares of the company's stock, valued at $369,681.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 3,453 shares of company stock valued at $665,534. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.