The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Bought by Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co

Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co lifted its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 2.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,697 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,093,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 55.0% during 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. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 0.8% during the third quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 7,355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,411,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Hershey by 2.3% during the second quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,631 shares of the company’s stock worth $484,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. grew its stake in Hershey by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. now owns 4,067 shares of the company’s stock worth $748,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its holdings in Hershey by 10.4% in the 2nd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 647 shares of the company’s stock valued at $119,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Trading Up 3.9 %

NYSE HSY opened at $183.95 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $37.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.24 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $168.16 and a 12 month high of $211.92. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $180.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $188.54.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.98%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.13%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on HSY. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Hershey from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $183.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research note on Tuesday. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $188.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $185.17.

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.