The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Acquired by Utah Retirement Systems

Utah Retirement Systems grew its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 0.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 24,294 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the quarter. Utah Retirement Systems’ holdings in Hershey were worth $4,114,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp increased its stake in Hershey by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp now owns 4,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $762,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A increased its position in shares of Hershey by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A now owns 3,240 shares of the company’s stock valued at $549,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. raised its stake in Hershey by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 5,546 shares of the company’s stock worth $939,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in Hershey by 42.5% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 238 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA grew its stake in Hershey by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 5,438 shares of the company’s stock valued at $921,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at approximately $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE:HSY opened at $166.89 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $169.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $169.15. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $211.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.78 billion, a PE ratio of 15.31, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.96.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.81 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. The business’s revenue was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.07 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.28%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays reduced their price objective on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $159.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $178.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $163.35.

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.