Lane & Associates LLC Takes Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Lane & Associates LLC acquired a new stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $266,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of HSY. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 55.0% during the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 7,355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,411,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 1,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $308,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,631 shares of the company’s stock valued at $484,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. now owns 4,067 shares of the company’s stock valued at $748,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of HSY stock opened at $174.81 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $184.51 and a two-hundred day moving average of $190.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $168.16 and a 12 month high of $211.92. The company has a market capitalization of $35.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.14, a P/E/G ratio of 4.19 and a beta of 0.38.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.13%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.13%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Hershey from $188.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Hershey from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Hershey from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Argus downgraded Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $189.33.

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.