Hershey Company (The) (HSY) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $1.45 on March 16th

Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, February 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be given a dividend of 1.452 per share on Monday, March 16th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. This is a 6.0% increase from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.37.

Hershey has increased its dividend by an average of 0.1%annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 15 consecutive years. Hershey has a payout ratio of 85.5% indicating that its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company’s earnings tumble. Research analysts expect Hershey to earn $6.83 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $5.48 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 80.2%.

Hershey Trading Up 8.8%

Shares of HSY stock opened at $224.00 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.48 and a beta of 0.18. Hershey has a 12-month low of $150.04 and a 12-month high of $225.55. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $188.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $185.53.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.31. Hershey had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 32.08%. The company had revenue of $3.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.69 earnings per share. Hershey’s revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.520 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Hershey will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other news, insider Stacy Taffet bought 200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $186.19 per share, for a total transaction of $37,238.00. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 9,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,744,786.49. This represents a 2.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Kirk Tanner purchased 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $185.46 per share, for a total transaction of $370,920.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 47,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,876,115.60. This trade represents a 4.36% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 6,000 shares of company stock worth $1,119,450. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey in the second quarter valued at approximately $224,000. Liberty One Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 32.4% in the 3rd quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC now owns 38,076 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,122,000 after acquiring an additional 9,309 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 58,078 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,695,000 after acquiring an additional 2,659 shares during the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 6.4% in the third quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 42,538 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,957,000 after acquiring an additional 2,573 shares during the period. Finally, CORDA Investment Management LLC. raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 6.6% during the third quarter. CORDA Investment Management LLC. now owns 113,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,276,000 after purchasing an additional 7,064 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Hershey

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a leading North American chocolatier and snack manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The company develops, produces and markets a wide range of confectionery and snack products for retail, foodservice and international customers. Hershey’s business spans manufacturing, branded product marketing, packaging and distribution across grocery, convenience, mass merchant and e-commerce channels.

Hershey’s product portfolio centers on chocolate and sugar confectionery, including core brands such as Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses and Twizzlers, alongside non-chocolate snacks and confectionery brands.