Rayburn West Financial Services LLC Purchases New Position in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Rayburn West Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 4,877 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $856,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Syon Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 3,020 shares of the company’s stock worth $550,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Haverford Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 6,796 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,237,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,561 shares of the company’s stock valued at $466,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC raised its stake in Hershey by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 8,034 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,462,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC raised its stake in Hershey by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 53,195 shares in the company, valued at $9,043,150. This trade represents a 2.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hershey Trading Up 1.4%

NYSE HSY opened at $183.67 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.11. Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $161.43 and a 52-week high of $239.48. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $177.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $195.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.47. Hershey had a net margin of 12.24% and a return on equity of 31.92%. The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.63 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.21 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.360-8.520 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 8.49 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.452 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is 79.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on HSY shares. DA Davidson set a $190.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Hershey from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Evercore set a $225.00 target price on Hershey in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Hershey from $191.00 to $193.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $191.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $203.61.

Hershey Company Profile

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a leading North American chocolatier and snack manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The company develops, produces and markets a wide range of confectionery and snack products for retail, foodservice and international customers. Hershey’s business spans manufacturing, branded product marketing, packaging and distribution across grocery, convenience, mass merchant and e-commerce channels.

Hershey’s product portfolio centers on chocolate and sugar confectionery, including core brands such as Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses and Twizzlers, alongside non-chocolate snacks and confectionery brands.