ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. Trims Holdings in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. decreased its holdings in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 0.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,858 shares of the company’s stock after selling 83 shares during the period. ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $3,627,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Hershey by 129.5% during the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. Fort Vancouver Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Hershey during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Hershey during the 1st quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in Hershey during the 1st quarter worth $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on HSY shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Hershey from $173.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Hershey from $154.00 to $157.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $174.05.

Hershey Stock Up 3.2%

Shares of Hershey stock opened at $195.04 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The company has a market cap of $39.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.90, a PEG ratio of 4.57 and a beta of 0.26. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $185.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $173.15. Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $140.13 and a 52-week high of $208.03.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.23. Hershey had a net margin of 13.54% and a return on equity of 37.36%. The business had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.27 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.809-5.997 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. Hershey’s payout ratio is 72.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $3,472,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 193,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,852,320. 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, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $240,120.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 38,068 shares in the company, valued at $6,852,240. The trade was a 3.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 65,704 shares of company stock worth $12,206,910 in the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.