Advantage Trust Co Cuts Stock Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Advantage Trust Co lowered its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 76.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 250 shares of the company’s stock after selling 800 shares during the period. Advantage Trust Co’s holdings in Hershey were worth $48,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Hershey in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $63,000. Tyler Stone Wealth Management lifted its position in Hershey by 196.0% in the third quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 1,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $309,000 after buying an additional 1,066 shares during the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Hershey by 0.8% during the third quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,871 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,235,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Hershey by 2.6% during the third quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 20,694 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,969,000 after acquiring an additional 523 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sheets Smith Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 29.6% in the third quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 2,614 shares of the company’s stock valued at $501,000 after acquiring an additional 597 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Up 1.6 %

Hershey stock traded up $2.82 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $175.67. The stock had a trading volume of 3,115,302 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,375,510. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $171.67 and a 52 week high of $211.92. The company has a market cap of $35.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.52, a PEG ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 0.38. 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 business’s 50 day moving average price is $189.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $192.17.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $2.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by ($0.16). Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.07 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 9.39 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.89%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $644,912.46. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HSY has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted 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. Citigroup downgraded shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $195.00 to $182.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $204.00 to $202.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $190.56.

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.