Value Partners Investments Inc. Sells 385 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Value Partners Investments Inc. decreased its holdings in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 0.2% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 214,409 shares of the company’s stock after selling 385 shares during the quarter. Hershey accounts for 2.8% of Value Partners Investments Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Value Partners Investments Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $35,582,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 15.0% during the 2nd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 4,206 shares of the company’s stock worth $698,000 after buying an additional 550 shares in the last quarter. Sage Capital Advisors llc lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Sage Capital Advisors llc now owns 17,854 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,963,000 after buying an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $207,000. Confluence Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 9.3% during the 2nd quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 764,392 shares of the company’s stock worth $126,851,000 after buying an additional 64,966 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the 1st quarter worth approximately $999,000. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $900,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 61,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,037,420. This trade represents a 7.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $240,120.00. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 86,127 shares of company stock valued at $15,759,755 in the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hershey Stock Down 0.3%

Hershey stock opened at $184.95 on Friday. Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $140.13 and a 1-year high of $208.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.56, a P/E/G ratio of 4.48 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $180.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $171.71.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.23. Hershey had a net margin of 13.54% and a return on equity of 37.36%. The business had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.27 EPS. Hershey’s 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, analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on HSY. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Hershey from $173.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Hershey in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $187.00 price target for the company. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on shares of Hershey from $155.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $171.22.

Hershey 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.