The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Sold by Cromwell Holdings LLC

Cromwell Holdings LLC reduced its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 35.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 225 shares of the company’s stock after selling 121 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $38,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 248.0% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at about $46,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 61.7% in the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, City State Bank lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 210.0% in the 4th quarter. City State Bank now owns 310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at approximately $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on HSY shares. Barclays dropped their target price on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. DA Davidson dropped their target price on Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Mizuho dropped their target price on Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Hershey has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $164.15.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $166.12 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $211.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company has a market capitalization of $33.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.79 and a beta of 0.37. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $161.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $178.46.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.30%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.28%.

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.