The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Bought by Altshuler Shaham Ltd

Altshuler Shaham Ltd raised its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 1,095.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,542 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,413 shares during the period. Altshuler Shaham Ltd’s holdings in Hershey were worth $287,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Hershey by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,911,173 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,983,427,000 after acquiring an additional 222,960 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 143.7% during the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,465,403 shares of the company’s stock worth $496,039,000 after acquiring an additional 1,453,819 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Hershey by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,779,549 shares of the company’s stock valued at $356,052,000 after acquiring an additional 35,393 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,170,830 shares of the company’s stock valued at $234,260,000 after purchasing an additional 8,344 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in Hershey by 2.2% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 997,329 shares of the company’s stock worth $198,085,000 after purchasing an additional 21,229 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Trading Up 0.1 %

HSY stock traded up $0.12 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $200.08. 1,470,935 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,984,141. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.81 billion, a PE ratio of 19.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $178.82 and a 1-year high of $275.62. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $192.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $190.97.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.33. Hershey had a net margin of 18.13% and a return on equity of 50.15%. The firm had revenue of $3.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.96 EPS. Hershey’s revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be given a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.74%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Hershey’s payout ratio is 54.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HSY has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Hershey from $200.00 to $179.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Edward Jones reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Hershey from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $235.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Hershey from $185.00 to $193.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $213.06.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total transaction of $278,745.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 38,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,196,824.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hershey Profile

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.