Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Sells 10,300 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund lowered its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 14.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 60,819 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,300 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Hershey were worth $10,300,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in Hershey by 107.7% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 17,609 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,377,000 after purchasing an additional 9,129 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 22.1% during the 3rd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,367 shares of the company’s stock worth $262,000 after buying an additional 247 shares during the last quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC now owns 1,982 shares of the company’s stock worth $380,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,877 shares of the company’s stock worth $360,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Hershey by 13.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 101,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,618,000 after buying an additional 11,971 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on HSY shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $178.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays dropped their target price on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.15.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at approximately $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $173.03 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The stock has a market cap of $35.01 billion, a PE ratio of 15.87, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.37. The company’s fifty day moving average is $160.47 and its 200 day moving average is $177.91. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. Research analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

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.