Jefferies Financial Group Has Lowered Expectations for Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Stock Price

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its price target cut by stock analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from $163.00 to $161.00 in a report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “underperform” rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price objective would suggest a potential downside of 9.98% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on HSY. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Hershey in a report on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $185.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America cut their target price on Hershey from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. UBS Group cut Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $226.00 to $209.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Hershey from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic began coverage on shares of Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “sell” rating and a $165.00 target price on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $191.00.

Hershey Stock Up 0.8 %

HSY traded up $1.35 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $178.85. 180,800 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,663,836. Hershey has a fifty-two week low of $176.78 and a fifty-two week 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 company has a market cap of $36.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.68, a PEG ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 0.37. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $191.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $192.52.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.17). The business 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 firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.01 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Hershey will post 9.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the 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 in the company, valued at $644,912.46. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hershey

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Hershey by 14.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,341,721 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,372,965,000 after acquiring an additional 2,158,912 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 30,461.7% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 573,643 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,100,130,000 after buying an additional 571,766 shares during the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 297.9% during the second quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 717,831 shares of the company’s stock worth $131,959,000 after buying an additional 537,419 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 2nd quarter valued at $82,123,000. Finally, Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Hershey by 3,404.3% in the 1st quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 256,447 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,879,000 after purchasing an additional 249,129 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Hershey

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.