MOKAN Wealth Management Inc. Increases Stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY)

MOKAN Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 7.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 10,608 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 745 shares during the quarter. MOKAN Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,815,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in HSY. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Hershey by 31.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,460,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,110,126,000 after buying an additional 2,980,997 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Hershey by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,635,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $785,003,000 after acquiring an additional 247,675 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Hershey by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,801,145 shares of the company’s stock valued at $642,139,000 after acquiring an additional 47,394 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 38.6% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,628,047 shares of the company’s stock valued at $275,710,000 after acquiring an additional 453,428 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,578,957 shares of the company’s stock worth $267,396,000 after purchasing an additional 154,238 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSY has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Hershey from $147.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Hershey from $167.00 to $155.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $178.00 to $175.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $162.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $158.84.

Hershey Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE:HSY opened at $172.06 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.22, a PEG ratio of 6.32 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Hershey Company has a one year low of $140.13 and a one year high of $208.03. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $164.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $165.40.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.15. Hershey had a return on equity of 38.70% and a net margin of 15.32%. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.07 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th were given a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.57%.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In related news, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.80, for a total transaction of $5,018,568.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 193,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,134,739.20. This trade represents a 13.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.11, for a total value of $153,025.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,994 shares in the company, valued at $470,387.34. This trade represents a 24.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.28% 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.