Elgethun Capital Management Buys Shares of 520 The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Elgethun Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 520 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $130,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Blair William & Co. IL raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 3.1% in the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 30,767 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,665,000 after acquiring an additional 916 shares in the last quarter. Dakota Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 1st quarter valued at $238,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 28.8% during the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,566 shares of the company’s stock worth $339,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Hershey by 1.6% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,057,990 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,045,383,000 after buying an additional 216,715 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. raised its stake in Hershey by 10.8% in the first quarter. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. now owns 32,183 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,972,000 after buying an additional 3,129 shares in the last quarter. 56.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Trading Down 1.0 %

HSY traded down $1.98 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $191.09. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 359,140 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,198,962. The firm has a market cap of $39.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.83, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.35. The Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $183.74 and a 52-week high of $276.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $196.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $226.76.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 26th. The company reported $2.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.47 by $0.13. Hershey had a net margin of 17.11% and a return on equity of 54.74%. The firm had revenue of $3.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.17 earnings per share. Hershey’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 9.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.192 per share. This represents a $4.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 16th. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 51.46%.

Insider Activity

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.55, for a total value of $285,825.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 34,316 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,538,913.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Pamela M. Arway sold 182 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.56, for a total value of $35,409.92. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 15,562 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,027,742.72. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.55, for a total value of $285,825.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,316 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,538,913.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,682 shares of company stock valued at $953,275. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HSY has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Hershey from $245.00 to $186.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 27th. Stephens began coverage on Hershey in a research note on Friday, October 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $240.00 price objective for the company. Argus cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $315.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 11th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on Hershey from $285.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada downgraded shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $239.00 to $213.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $246.05.

Hershey Company 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; pantry items, such as baking ingredients, toppings, beverages, and sundae syrups; and snack items comprising spreads, bars, snack bites, mixes, popcorn, and pretzels.