Mcrae Capital Management Inc. Buys 5,720 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Mcrae Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 15.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 42,322 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,720 shares during the quarter. Hershey accounts for approximately 1.4% of Mcrae Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Mcrae Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $7,167,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 5.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,348,127,000 after buying an additional 386,670 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Hershey by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,387,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $841,476,000 after acquiring an additional 109,336 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,753,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $717,606,000 after acquiring an additional 35,688 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,571,000 after purchasing an additional 389,404 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Hershey by 3.2% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 964,748 shares of the company’s stock valued at $185,027,000 after purchasing an additional 29,507 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Performance

HSY stock opened at $160.92 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $163.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $179.71. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.56 billion, a PE ratio of 14.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.37.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. Analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 6.77 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.41%. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 50.28%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $178.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “sell” rating and a $165.00 price objective on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $164.15.

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; 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.