HighTower Advisors LLC Trims Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

HighTower Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 5.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 113,747 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,412 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC owned 0.06% of Hershey worth $19,263,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Hershey by 5.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,348,127,000 after purchasing an additional 386,670 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Hershey by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,635,390 shares of the company’s stock worth $785,003,000 after purchasing an additional 247,675 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Hershey by 1.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,753,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $717,606,000 after purchasing an additional 35,688 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Hershey by 66.7% during the third 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 raised its holdings in Hershey by 3.2% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 964,748 shares of the company’s stock worth $185,027,000 after purchasing an additional 29,507 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hershey Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $170.32 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $140.13 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $162.15 and its 200 day moving average price is $175.86. The firm has a market cap of $34.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. 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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on HSY shares. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $163.75.

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.