The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Sold by Members Trust Co

Members Trust Co lowered its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 22.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,172 shares of the company’s stock after selling 342 shares during the quarter. Members Trust Co’s holdings in Hershey were worth $225,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 218.2% during the second quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in Hershey by 55.0% in the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on HSY. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. UBS Group lowered shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $226.00 to $209.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Hershey from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $184.00 to $163.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Hershey in a research report on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $185.00 price target for the company. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $195.00.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY traded down $1.92 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $184.08. The company had a trading volume of 1,102,612 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,689,925. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $178.82 and a 12 month high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The firm has a market cap of $37.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.36, a PEG ratio of 5.44 and a beta of 0.37. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $195.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $193.46.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.01 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s payout ratio is 54.31%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total value of $286,245.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,531,729.24. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $644,912.46. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total transaction of $286,245.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,531,729.24. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hershey Company 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.