Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. Reduces Stake in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. lowered its position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 0.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,458 shares of the company’s stock after selling 72 shares during the period. Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,570,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. acquired a new position in Hershey in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH acquired a new position in Hershey in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Hershey by 129.5% in the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. Fort Vancouver Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Hershey in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Hershey in the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related news, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $3,472,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 193,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $34,852,320. This represents a 9.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $240,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 38,068 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,852,240. This represents a 3.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 65,704 shares of company stock valued at $12,206,910. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hershey Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of HSY stock opened at $192.19 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The company has a market cap of $38.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.52, a PEG ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 0.26. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $186.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $174.09. Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $140.13 and a 1-year high of $208.03.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.23. Hershey had a return on equity of 37.36% and a net margin of 13.54%.The firm had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.27 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.809-5.997 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.78%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on HSY. BNP Paribas Exane raised Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 15th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Hershey from $154.00 to $157.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 25th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on Hershey from $171.00 to $188.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Mizuho boosted their price target on Hershey from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $175.89.

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.