Bontempo Ohly Capital Mgmt LLC Invests $4.40 Million in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Bontempo Ohly Capital Mgmt LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 25,719 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,399,000. Hershey comprises approximately 2.1% of Bontempo Ohly Capital Mgmt LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of HSY. Gotham Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 3,019 shares of the company’s stock worth $511,000 after buying an additional 145 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 203,238 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,419,000 after buying an additional 2,401 shares during the period. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 20.0% in the fourth quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 6,236 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,056,000 after buying an additional 1,039 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 496,771 shares of the company’s stock worth $84,128,000 after buying an additional 27,353 shares during the period. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter worth $1,950,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $185.64 on Friday. Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $208.03. The business has a 50-day moving average of $180.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $171.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.65, a P/E/G ratio of 4.48 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.23. Hershey had a return on equity of 37.36% and a net margin of 13.54%.The company had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.27 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.809-5.997 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 72.78%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on HSY. Bank of America raised their target price on Hershey from $175.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. DA Davidson raised their target price on Hershey from $171.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Hershey in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $187.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Hershey from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Hershey from $160.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $171.22.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hershey news, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.00, for a total value of $3,742,260.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 193,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,563,056. The trade was a 9.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $240,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 38,068 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,852,240. This represents a 3.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 86,127 shares of company stock worth $15,759,755 over the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.