The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Receives $164.15 Average PT from Analysts

Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the twenty-one brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $164.15.

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on HSY. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Bernstein Bank decreased their price target on Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup raised shares of Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $159.00 to $154.00 in a research report on Friday, February 7th. DA Davidson reduced their target price on Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of HSY stock opened at $178.59 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $36.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.96. Hershey has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $211.92. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $160.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $177.58.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. On average, analysts expect that Hershey will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.28%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at approximately $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hershey

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. bought a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at $318,000. Ascent Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 11.2% in the 4th quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 8,552 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,448,000 after buying an additional 859 shares during the period. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Aurdan Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at $422,000. Finally, PVG Asset Management Corp bought a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter worth about $288,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.