Monte Financial Group LLC Purchases 5,671 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Monte Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 17.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,963 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 5,671 shares during the period. Hershey comprises approximately 2.8% of Monte Financial Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Monte Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $6,429,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 571,766 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Hershey by 66.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,571,000 after purchasing an additional 389,404 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,348,127,000 after purchasing an additional 386,670 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 31.3% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 586,565 shares of the company’s stock valued at $112,491,000 after buying an additional 139,831 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,387,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $841,476,000 after buying an additional 109,336 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HSY has been the topic of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $183.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 23rd. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Citigroup cut their target price on Hershey from $165.00 to $159.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $171.79.

Hershey Stock Up 0.4 %

HSY stock opened at $150.54 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $147.60 and a twelve month high of $211.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The company has a market cap of $30.46 billion, a PE ratio of 17.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 0.38. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $169.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $183.26.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 63.13%.

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.