Confluence Investment Management LLC Has $127.01 Million Stake in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Confluence Investment Management LLC cut its position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 7.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 697,914 shares of the company’s stock after selling 57,221 shares during the period. Hershey accounts for about 1.9% of Confluence Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Confluence Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $127,006,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Choreo LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 3.6% during the second quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 1,708 shares of the company’s stock worth $283,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Bellevue Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 13.5% in the 3rd quarter. Bellevue Asset Management LLC now owns 514 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators grew its position in Hershey by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 798 shares of the company’s stock worth $149,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Hershey by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,427 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,202,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC increased its holdings in Hershey by 46.3% during the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 199 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on HSY shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $185.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. DA Davidson set a $243.00 target price on Hershey in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Barclays lifted their price target on Hershey from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Hershey from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $222.68.

Hershey Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of HSY opened at $210.41 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $213.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $194.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.65 billion, a PE ratio of 48.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.14. Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $150.04 and a 12-month high of $239.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.31. Hershey had a net margin of 7.55% and a return on equity of 27.90%. The business had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.97 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.69 earnings per share. Hershey’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.520 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were paid a $1.452 dividend. This is an increase from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 133.87%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.71, for a total value of $325,065.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,869 shares in the company, valued at $12,974,210.99. This trade represents a 2.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Jason Reiman sold 2,000 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total value of $452,140.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 41,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,277,008.52. This trade represents a 4.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 10,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,195,945 in the last 90 days. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.