Duality Advisers LP Increases Stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Duality Advisers LP raised its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 42.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 35,922 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,670 shares during the quarter. Hershey comprises 0.7% of Duality Advisers LP’s portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Duality Advisers LP’s holdings in Hershey were worth $6,697,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the third quarter worth $25,000. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the third quarter worth $25,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. First Financial Corp IN bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 121.3% during the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 135 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of HSY traded up $0.16 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $185.02. The stock had a trading volume of 1,740,253 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,532,469. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $192.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $190.87. The Hershey Company has a one year low of $178.82 and a one year high of $276.88. The firm has a market cap of $37.73 billion, a PE ratio of 20.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.72 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 16.67% and a return on equity of 51.79%. Hershey’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.02 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The business 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 is an increase from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.96%. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 60.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. Edward Jones restated a “hold” rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $179.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $223.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.97, for a total transaction of $283,455.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 29,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,634,329.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $369,681.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.97, for a total transaction of $283,455.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 29,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,634,329.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,453 shares of company stock valued at $670,244. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

About Hershey

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.