14,938 Shares in Hershey Company (The) $HSY Purchased by Uhlmann Price Securities LLC

Uhlmann Price Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 14,938 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,215,000. Hershey comprises approximately 0.2% of Uhlmann Price Securities LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Syon Capital LLC boosted its position in Hershey by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 3,020 shares of the company’s stock worth $550,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. Haverford Trust Co increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 6,796 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,237,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,561 shares of the company’s stock valued at $466,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 8,034 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,462,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC lifted its holdings in Hershey by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 3,070 shares of the company’s stock worth $559,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Stock Down 0.1%

HSY stock opened at $172.38 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.09. Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $160.07 and a 52-week high of $239.48. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $188.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $198.22.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.03 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 28.98% and a net margin of 9.12%.Hershey’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.09 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Hershey Company will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $1.452 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 108.19%.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.10, for a total transaction of $291,150.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 57,695 shares in the company, valued at $11,198,599.50. This trade represents a 2.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on HSY. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on Hershey from $212.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 30th. Barclays cut their target price on Hershey from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Hershey from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Evercore upgraded Hershey from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $255.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $218.06.

Hershey Company Profile

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.