DT Investment Partners LLC Sells 70 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

DT Investment Partners LLC reduced its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 0.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,645 shares of the company’s stock after selling 70 shares during the quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $4,075,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in HSY. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. purchased a new position in Hershey in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new position in Hershey in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 121.3% during the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 135 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, First Financial Corp IN purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total transaction of $89,938.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,862 shares in the company, valued at $369,681.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.97, for a total transaction of $283,455.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 29,816 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,634,329.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total value of $89,938.62. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $369,681.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,453 shares of company stock worth $670,244. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of HSY stock traded up $0.16 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $185.02. 1,740,253 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,532,469. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The firm has a market cap of $37.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.34. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $192.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $190.97. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $178.82 and a fifty-two week high of $276.88.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.72 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 51.79% and a net margin of 16.67%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.02 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.96%. This is an increase from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on HSY shares. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $213.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, March 15th. BNP Paribas lowered Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $208.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Hershey from $185.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Barclays boosted their price target on Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Hershey from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $223.33.

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.