Hudson Bay Capital Management LP Sells 13,360 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Hudson Bay Capital Management LP cut its stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 35.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 24,617 shares of the company’s stock after selling 13,360 shares during the quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP’s holdings in Hershey were worth $4,605,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in HSY. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd raised its stake in Hershey by 2.0% in the third quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 35,617 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,662,000 after buying an additional 689 shares during the last quarter. Investment Research Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the third quarter worth about $515,000. Cambria Investment Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the third quarter worth about $241,000. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the third quarter valued at about $10,235,000. Finally, Achmea Investment Management B.V. raised its position in shares of Hershey by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V. now owns 14,808 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,769,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

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

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of Hershey stock opened at $210.10 on Friday. Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $150.04 and a twelve 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. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $213.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $194.42. The firm has a market cap of $42.58 billion, a PE ratio of 48.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.14.

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

Hershey Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HSY has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $267.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, February 6th. DA Davidson set a $243.00 price target on Hershey in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Zacks Research raised Hershey from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Hershey from $238.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $249.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. 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. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $222.68.

About Hershey

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.