National Bank of Canada FI Sells 10,077 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

National Bank of Canada FI reduced its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 9.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 92,723 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,077 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI’s holdings in Hershey were worth $15,708,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 248.0% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new position in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its holdings in Hershey by 61.7% during the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on HSY shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Hershey in a research report on Monday, March 24th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $183.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $178.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $162.50.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $162.12 on Friday. 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 business has a 50 day simple moving average of $165.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $172.88. The company has a market capitalization of $32.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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, equities research analysts expect 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 was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th were issued 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 yield of 3.38%. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 50.28%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the firm’s 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 approximately $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.