Freedom Investment Management Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Freedom Investment Management Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 20.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,724 shares of the company’s stock after selling 937 shares during the period. Freedom Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $637,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Trust Co. of Vermont grew its position in Hershey by 2.4% during the first quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 2,691 shares of the company’s stock valued at $460,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Ignite Planners LLC grew its position in Hershey by 5.2% during the first quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 1,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $214,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. grew its position in Hershey by 0.9% during the first quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. now owns 7,248 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,229,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in Hershey by 0.9% during the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 7,189 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,179,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Hershey by 2.6% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,768 shares of the company’s stock valued at $473,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Up 1.5%

NYSE HSY opened at $183.36 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.53. The company has a market capitalization of $37.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.35, a P/E/G ratio of 4.38 and a beta of 0.27. Hershey Company has a one year low of $140.13 and a one year high of $208.03. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $176.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $169.89.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 37.36% and a net margin of 13.54%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.27 EPS. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.809-5.997 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 72.78%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on HSY shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Bank of America raised their price objective on Hershey from $175.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on Hershey from $155.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Hershey from $171.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $170.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.00, for a total transaction of $3,742,260.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 193,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,563,056. The trade was a 9.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP James Turoff sold 1,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $227,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 25,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,431,175. This represents a 4.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 117,337 shares of company stock worth $20,778,323 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

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.