The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Sold by Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec

Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec trimmed its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 36,105 shares of the company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec’s holdings in Hershey were worth $6,114,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Montag & Caldwell LLC acquired a new position in Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in Hershey by 248.0% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in Hershey during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Down 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $163.10 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $168.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $168.89. The Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $211.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company has a market capitalization of $33.01 billion, a PE ratio of 14.96, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.28.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.15. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. The company had revenue of $2.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.07 earnings per share. Hershey’s revenue for the quarter was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on HSY. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $183.00 to $177.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Mizuho lowered their target price on Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Bernstein Bank reduced their price target on Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $160.45.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hershey Company 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.