Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Boosts Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 86,625 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,596 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $14,879,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Hershey by 30,461.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 573,643 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,100,130,000 after acquiring an additional 571,766 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Hershey by 66.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,571,000 after acquiring an additional 389,404 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in Hershey by 5.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,348,127,000 after acquiring an additional 386,670 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Hershey by 31.3% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 586,565 shares of the company’s stock valued at $112,491,000 after acquiring an additional 139,831 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Hershey by 2.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,387,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $841,476,000 after acquiring an additional 109,336 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Performance

HSY stock opened at $157.99 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.49, a PEG ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.37. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $140.13 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $162.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $179.24.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. On average, research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.77 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on HSY. Piper Sandler downgraded shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, DA Davidson decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.15.

Hershey 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.