Jefferies Financial Group Issues Positive Forecast for Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Stock Price

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its target price upped by analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from $185.00 to $207.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 4.63% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms have also commented on HSY. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Hershey in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Hershey from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $182.00 price target on Hershey and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $214.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $194.32.

Hershey Trading Up 1.6%

Hershey stock traded up $3.09 during trading on Monday, reaching $197.84. 1,086,971 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,790,262. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $187.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $184.71. The company has a market capitalization of $40.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.57 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.83. Hershey has a 52-week low of $140.13 and a 52-week high of $201.86.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.24. Hershey had a return on equity of 32.08% and a net margin of 11.84%.The business had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.11 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.34 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Hershey will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In related news, CEO Kirk Tanner acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $185.46 per share, with a total value of $370,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 47,860 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,876,115.60. The trade was a 4.36% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.67, for a total transaction of $298,005.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 52,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,394,215.73. This trade represents a 2.79% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 6,000 shares of company stock worth $1,119,450. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hershey

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Hershey by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,067,235 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,469,855,000 after buying an additional 191,671 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Hershey by 1.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,253,041 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,356,681,000 after buying an additional 128,982 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Hershey by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,116,739 shares of the company’s stock worth $849,123,000 after purchasing an additional 125,100 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 2.8% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,567,373 shares of the company’s stock worth $755,305,000 after buying an additional 126,519 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Hershey by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,276,326 shares of the company’s stock worth $543,712,000 after buying an additional 144,640 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hershey Company 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.