Stephens Inc. AR Purchases 984 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Stephens Inc. AR boosted its position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 1.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 57,202 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 984 shares during the quarter. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Hershey were worth $9,493,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. bought a new position in Hershey in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 129.5% during the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Fort Vancouver Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the first quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the first quarter valued at about $35,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $186.18 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $186.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $175.05. The firm has a market cap of $37.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.73, a P/E/G ratio of 4.53 and a beta of 0.26. Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $208.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 37.36% and a net margin of 13.54%.Hershey’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.27 earnings per share. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.809-5.997 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th were given a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.78%.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.12, for a total value of $283,680.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 58,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,029,289.28. This represents a 2.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.00, for a total value of $3,742,260.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 193,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,563,056. This represents a 9.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 40,080 shares of company stock worth $7,594,590. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on HSY shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $170.00 to $222.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. Morgan Stanley set a $193.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $176.21.

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.