The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Acquired by Douglas Lane & Associates LLC

Douglas Lane & Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 64.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 274,911 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 107,826 shares during the quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC owned about 0.14% of Hershey worth $52,723,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 37.9% during the third quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,569 shares of the company’s stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Hershey by 59.5% in the third quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,015 shares of the company’s stock valued at $770,000 after acquiring an additional 1,498 shares in the last quarter. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA acquired a new stake in Hershey in the third quarter valued at approximately $384,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in Hershey by 24.4% in the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 9,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,886,000 after acquiring an additional 1,927 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Carnegie Investment Counsel raised its holdings in Hershey by 60.8% in the third quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 20,730 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,976,000 after acquiring an additional 7,835 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE:HSY traded down $1.59 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $185.98. The stock had a trading volume of 1,157,774 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,695,468. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $195.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $193.52. The Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $178.82 and a 12-month high of $211.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market cap of $37.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.43, a P/E/G ratio of 5.44 and a beta of 0.37.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.01 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.47 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.31%.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at $644,912.46. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total transaction of $286,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at $6,531,729.24. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $644,912.46. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on HSY shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price 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. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. UBS Group cut shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $226.00 to $209.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $197.90.

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.