The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Purchased by iA Global Asset Management Inc.

iA Global Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 325.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 7,808 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,972 shares during the period. iA Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,322,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new position in Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its stake in Hershey by 248.0% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its stake in Hershey by 61.7% during the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. City State Bank boosted its stake in Hershey by 210.0% during the fourth quarter. City State Bank now owns 310 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Hershey during the third quarter worth $60,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Trading Up 1.8 %

NYSE:HSY opened at $167.38 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $162.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $175.12. The Hershey Company has a one year low of $140.13 and a one year high of $211.92. The stock has a market cap of $33.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.36, 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 announced its quarterly earnings data 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.27%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.28%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HSY has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Bernstein Bank reduced their target price on Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Piper Sandler downgraded Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group reduced their target price on Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $159.00 to $154.00 in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Hershey currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $163.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.