42,924 Shares in Hershey Company (The) $HSY Purchased by Bell Bank

Bell Bank purchased a new position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 42,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,765,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,303,889,000. GQG Partners LLC acquired a new position in Hershey in the 2nd quarter valued at about $485,436,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the 2nd quarter valued at $274,871,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in Hershey during the second quarter worth about $183,623,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in Hershey by 315.4% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,083,675 shares of the company’s stock worth $225,285,000 after purchasing an additional 822,772 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Trading Up 1.4%

NYSE:HSY opened at $169.34 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.00, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.10. Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $156.16 and a 1 year high of $239.48. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $172.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $180.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 1.18.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.47. Hershey had a return on equity of 31.92% and a net margin of 12.24%. The business had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.63 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.21 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.360-8.520 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hershey Company will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th were issued a dividend of $1.4520 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 14th. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Hershey’s payout ratio is 79.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays decreased their target price on Hershey from $200.00 to $178.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $178.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $201.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Bank of America reduced their target price on Hershey from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Hershey from $212.00 to $206.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $199.44.

Hershey Profile

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a global confectionery and snack food manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Founded by Milton S. Hershey in 1894, the company began as a chocolate producer and has grown into one of the largest branded snack businesses in North America.

Hershey’s portfolio includes chocolate, non-chocolate confectionery, gum and mints, and salty snacks. Its brands include Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses, Kit Kat in the United States under license from Nestlé, Jolly Rancher, Twizzlers, Ice Breakers, SkinnyPop and Dot’s Pretzels.