Equity Investment Corp Buys Shares of 572,436 Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Equity Investment Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 572,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $100,434,000. Equity Investment Corp owned 0.28% of Hershey as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of HSY. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Reflection Asset Management bought a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc bought a new position in Hershey in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of Hershey stock opened at $183.67 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.90 billion, a PE ratio of 25.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.11. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $177.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $195.62. Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $161.43 and a 12 month high of $239.48.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.63 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 31.92% and a net margin of 12.24%.Hershey’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.21 EPS. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.360-8.520 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Hershey Company will post 8.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.452 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 79.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 53,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,043,150. This represents a 2.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays lowered their price objective on Hershey from $208.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Hershey from $191.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Evercore set a $225.00 price target on Hershey in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Bank of America dropped their price target on Hershey from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut 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. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $203.61.

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.