The Goldman Sachs Group Initiates Coverage on Hershey (NYSE:HSY)

The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Hershey (NYSE:HSY) in a research note published on Monday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage issued a sell rating and a $185.00 price target on the stock.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on HSY. Piper Sandler reissued a neutral rating and issued a $179.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Edward Jones reaffirmed a hold rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, April 19th. Argus cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $204.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $203.47.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE HSY opened at $200.61 on Monday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $190.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $193.25. Hershey has a 12-month low of $178.82 and a 12-month high of $224.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The company has a market cap of $40.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.88, a PEG ratio of 4.96 and a beta of 0.36.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.01 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Hershey will post 9.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.73%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.31%.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $644,912.46. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $644,912.46. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total value of $286,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at $6,531,729.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 5,038 shares of company stock worth $974,603. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 218.2% during the second quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Hershey by 55.0% in the second quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in Hershey in the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Hershey in the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Hershey in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

About Hershey

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.