Bridges Investment Management Inc. Lowers Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Bridges Investment Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 4.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 65,342 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,105 shares during the quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $11,066,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Forum Financial Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 4,130 shares of the company’s stock valued at $792,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Avestar Capital LLC boosted its stake in Hershey by 6.0% during the third quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 1,175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $225,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Parthenon LLC grew its holdings in Hershey by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Parthenon LLC now owns 24,240 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,649,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Hershey by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,151 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,563,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 5,438 shares of the company’s stock worth $921,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE HSY opened at $172.68 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $211.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.37. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $160.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $177.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.96.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.28%.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on HSY. Bernstein Bank cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Barclays dropped their price target on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.15.

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.