Headlands Technologies LLC Acquires 2,612 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Headlands Technologies LLC boosted its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 244.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,680 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,612 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $716,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Donoghue Forlines LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Donoghue Forlines LLC now owns 3,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $652,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Hershey by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 1,655 shares of the company’s stock valued at $322,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Choate Investment Advisors increased its stake in Hershey by 82.9% during the 1st quarter. Choate Investment Advisors now owns 1,994 shares of the company’s stock valued at $388,000 after purchasing an additional 904 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in Hershey by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 54,540 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,608,000 after purchasing an additional 1,168 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Hershey by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,011 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,947,000 after purchasing an additional 382 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE HSY traded up $0.29 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $189.21. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 523,121 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,848,067. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $178.82 and a 1 year high of $248.93. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $192.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $192.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.23 and a beta of 0.36.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.74 by $0.33. The company had revenue of $3.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 18.13% and a return on equity of 50.15%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.96 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.59 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.90%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on HSY. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $204.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $179.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $213.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Argus lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $209.67.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.54, for a total value of $306,810.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 37,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,614,615.12. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders sold 4,500 shares of company stock worth $859,950. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by 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.