SevenBridge Financial Group LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

SevenBridge Financial Group LLC reduced its position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 19,901 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,958 shares during the quarter. SevenBridge Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $3,548,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 1,537.5% in the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the period. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in Hershey by 46.3% during the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 199 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Hershey in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Park Place Capital Corp acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the third quarter worth $41,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on HSY shares. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $249.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. DA Davidson set a $243.00 price target on Hershey in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Hershey from $195.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $236.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $185.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $222.21.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Rohit Grover sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total value of $791,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 34,568 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,814,787.76. The trade was a 9.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.66, for a total value of $329,490.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 50,819 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,162,901.54. The trade was a 2.87% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 10,000 shares of company stock worth $2,153,645. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $217.70 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $209.35 and a two-hundred day moving average of $192.86. The company has a market capitalization of $44.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.14. Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $150.04 and a 1 year high of $239.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $3.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 27.90% and a net margin of 7.55%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.69 EPS. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.520 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.452 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. This is an increase from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.37. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is 133.87%.

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.