Bridges Investment Management Inc. Lowers Position in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Bridges Investment Management Inc. lessened its stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 5.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 62,279 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,319 shares during the period. Bridges Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $11,333,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of HSY. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, WHI TRUST Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on HSY shares. UBS Group decreased their target price on Hershey from $215.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hershey in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Hershey from $247.00 to $227.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. DA Davidson decreased their target price on Hershey from $230.00 to $208.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Hershey from $230.00 to $215.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $218.06.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE:HSY opened at $184.12 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $196.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $198.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The company has a market cap of $37.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.09. Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $158.67 and a twelve month high of $239.48.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.03 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 28.98% and a net margin of 9.12%.The business’s revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.09 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Hershey Company will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a $1.452 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is 108.19%.

Insider Activity

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

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.