Hershey Company (The) $HSY Shares Purchased by Balyasny Asset Management L.P.

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 150.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,278,881 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 767,478 shares during the quarter. Hershey accounts for approximately 0.3% of Balyasny Asset Management L.P.’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Balyasny Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $232,731,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in Hershey by 6.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 15,310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,618,000 after purchasing an additional 937 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Hershey by 20.2% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $116,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL acquired a new stake in Hershey in the 2nd quarter valued at $267,000. Bank of Nova Scotia grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 4.5% during the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 17,927 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,975,000 after acquiring an additional 769 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 5.4% during the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 22,247 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,692,000 after acquiring an additional 1,149 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Stock Down 3.7%

NYSE:HSY opened at $175.73 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $35.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.09. Hershey Company has a one year low of $160.07 and a one year high of $239.48. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $189.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $198.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.24.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.03 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 28.98% and a net margin of 9.12%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.09 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a $1.452 dividend. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 108.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.10, for a total value of $291,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 57,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,198,599.50. This trade represents a 2.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on HSY shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Hershey from $212.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $249.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Hershey from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. DA Davidson lowered their target price on Hershey from $230.00 to $208.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on Hershey from $215.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $218.06.

Hershey Profile

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.