Hilltop Holdings Inc. Has $512,000 Stock Holdings in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Hilltop Holdings Inc. trimmed its holdings in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 81.5% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,465 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,884 shares during the quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $512,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Reflection Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Manchester Capital Management LLC raised its position in Hershey by 123.0% in the 4th quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 165 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on HSY shares. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Hershey from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Hershey from $204.00 to $191.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Hershey from $247.00 to $227.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Hershey from $215.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $208.28.

Hershey Stock Performance

HSY stock opened at $180.41 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $180.12 and its 200-day moving average is $196.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The company has a market cap of $36.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.11. Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $161.43 and a twelve month high of $239.48.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.03 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 28.98% and a net margin of 9.12%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.09 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Hershey Company will post 8.42 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were given a dividend of $1.452 per share. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 108.19%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.43, for a total value of $260,145.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 54,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,485,753.85. This represents a 2.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

About Hershey

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a leading North American chocolatier and snack manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The company develops, produces and markets a wide range of confectionery and snack products for retail, foodservice and international customers. Hershey’s business spans manufacturing, branded product marketing, packaging and distribution across grocery, convenience, mass merchant and e-commerce channels.

Hershey’s product portfolio centers on chocolate and sugar confectionery, including core brands such as Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses and Twizzlers, alongside non-chocolate snacks and confectionery brands.