The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Stock Holdings Trimmed by Voya Investment Management LLC

Voya Investment Management LLC lessened its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 4.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 49,602 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,574 shares during the quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC's holdings in Hershey were worth $8,400,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. Virtu Financial LLC raised its position in Hershey by 83.1% in the third quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 14,170 shares of the company's stock worth $2,717,000 after acquiring an additional 6,433 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 86.8% in the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 1,156 shares of the company's stock valued at $222,000 after purchasing an additional 537 shares in the last quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 3.1% in the third quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. now owns 8,249 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,582,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co grew its position in Hershey by 2.8% during the third quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 5,697 shares of the company's stock worth $1,093,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its holdings in Hershey by 2.1% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 116,432 shares of the company's stock valued at $22,329,000 after buying an additional 2,391 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Hershey Stock Down 2.4 %

HSY stock traded down $4.03 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $163.10. 2,230,798 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,778,399. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $168.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $169.00. The Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $140.13 and a 12-month high of $211.92.

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

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on HSY. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. UBS Group lowered their target price on Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Hershey from $183.00 to $177.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Piper Sandler cut shares of Hershey from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $160.45.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.