GPM Growth Investors Inc. Acquires Shares of 17,877 The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

GPM Growth Investors Inc. bought a new position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 17,877 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,333,000. Hershey comprises 1.6% of GPM Growth Investors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 754 shares of the company’s stock valued at $141,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its position in Hershey by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 5,258 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,052,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Hershey by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,428 shares of the company’s stock valued at $272,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in Hershey by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,138 shares of the company’s stock valued at $212,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Hershey by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 737 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total transaction of $278,745.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 38,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,196,824.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total value 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total transaction of $89,938.62. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $369,681.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 3,453 shares of company stock worth $665,534 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Price Performance

HSY stock traded up $3.86 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $196.33. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,813,836 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,955,790. The company’s fifty day moving average is $191.77 and its 200-day moving average is $190.64. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $178.82 and a 1 year high of $276.88. The company has a market capitalization of $40.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.07. Hershey had a net margin of 16.67% and a return on equity of 51.79%. The business had revenue of $2.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.72 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.02 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a $1.37 dividend. This is a boost from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on HSY. Citigroup reduced their price target on Hershey from $213.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Hershey from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $191.00 to $183.00 in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Hershey from $200.00 to $179.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Edward Jones restated a “hold” rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, April 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $212.78.

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.