J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Acquires 389 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,086 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 389 shares during the quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,172,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in Hershey during the first quarter valued at $36,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Hershey in the 2nd quarter valued at $39,000. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey in the 1st quarter worth $47,000. Finally, Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Hershey by 934.5% in the 2nd quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 300 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 271 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hershey Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of HSY opened at $188.39 on Friday. Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $208.03. The company has a market cap of $38.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.02, a P/E/G ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $183.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $177.39.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.24. Hershey had a net margin of 13.54% and a return on equity of 37.36%. The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.34 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.900-6.000 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 17th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 17th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 81.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HSY has been the topic of several research reports. Bank of America lifted their target price on Hershey from $175.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Hershey from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 31st. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Hershey from $204.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Hershey from $154.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $179.74.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.56, for a total value of $269,340.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 55,319 shares in the company, valued at $9,933,079.64. This trade represents a 2.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Stacy Taffet bought 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $186.19 per share, with a total value of $37,238.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 9,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,744,786.49. The trade was a 2.18% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 6,000 shares of company stock worth $1,103,640. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.