The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Sold by Intrust Bank NA

Intrust Bank NA trimmed its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 3.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,009 shares of the company’s stock after selling 148 shares during the quarter. Intrust Bank NA’s holdings in Hershey were worth $679,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp grew its position in Hershey by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp now owns 4,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $762,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A now owns 3,240 shares of the company’s stock worth $549,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. raised its holdings in Hershey by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 5,546 shares of the company’s stock worth $939,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in Hershey by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 5,438 shares of the company’s stock valued at $921,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Finally, Waterfront Wealth Inc. boosted its holdings in Hershey by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 5,744 shares of the company’s stock valued at $973,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on HSY. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Piper Sandler downgraded shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price target for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. 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. Finally, Bernstein Bank decreased their price target on Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $162.50.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE HSY opened at $169.87 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $164.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $173.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $211.92. The company has a market capitalization of $34.38 billion, a PE ratio of 15.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32.

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

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.23%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.