Sanford C. Bernstein Cuts Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Price Target to $230.00

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its price objective cut by Sanford C. Bernstein from $237.00 to $230.00 in a report issued on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on HSY. Citigroup reduced their price target on Hershey from $204.00 to $188.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler restated a neutral rating and set a $179.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, June 21st. BNP Paribas downgraded shares of Hershey from an outperform rating to a neutral rating and set a $208.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $204.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, Argus lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $205.65.

Hershey Stock Performance

HSY opened at $191.15 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $192.17 and its 200 day moving average is $192.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The company has a market cap of $38.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.94, a PEG ratio of 4.33 and a beta of 0.36. Hershey has a 12-month low of $178.82 and a 12-month high of $248.93.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.33. Hershey had a net margin of 18.13% and a return on equity of 50.15%. The business had revenue of $3.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.96 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Hershey will post 9.59 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.87%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.31%.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.54, for a total transaction of $306,810.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 37,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,614,615.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,500 shares of company stock valued at $859,950. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 14.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,341,721 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,372,965,000 after purchasing an additional 2,158,912 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Hershey in the fourth quarter worth $349,448,000. Confluence Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Hershey by 297.9% during the second quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 717,831 shares of the company’s stock worth $131,959,000 after buying an additional 537,419 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in Hershey by 18,495.8% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 295,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,125,000 after acquiring an additional 294,083 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 3,404.3% in the first quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 256,447 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,879,000 after acquiring an additional 249,129 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.