Tobam Sells 8,694 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Tobam trimmed its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 23.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,589 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,694 shares during the period. Hershey makes up 1.5% of Tobam’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Tobam’s holdings in Hershey were worth $4,842,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. 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 valued at $1,348,127,000 after purchasing an additional 386,670 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Hershey by 2.6% during the third 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 during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Hershey by 1.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,753,751 shares of the company’s stock valued at $717,606,000 after buying an additional 35,688 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 66.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,571,000 after acquiring an additional 389,404 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp increased its holdings in Hershey by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 964,748 shares of the company’s stock worth $185,027,000 after acquiring an additional 29,507 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HSY has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Hershey in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “sell” rating and a $165.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $178.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research report on Monday. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup raised Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $159.00 to $154.00 in a research note on Friday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $166.85.

Hershey Stock Performance

Hershey stock opened at $152.43 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $140.13 and a 1-year high of $211.92. The firm has a market cap of $30.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.56, a P/E/G ratio of 4.30 and a beta of 0.38. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average of $165.24 and a 200-day moving average of $180.97.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a net margin of 16.17% and a return on equity of 43.24%. Sell-side analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.06 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.60%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.