Smithfield Trust Co Cuts Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Smithfield Trust Co trimmed its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 8.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 9,374 shares of the company’s stock after selling 859 shares during the period. Smithfield Trust Co’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,589,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in Hershey by 248.0% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Hershey during the third quarter worth about $46,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its position in Hershey by 61.7% in the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, City State Bank boosted its stake in Hershey by 210.0% in the fourth quarter. City State Bank now owns 310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. DA Davidson decreased their target price on Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company cut 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. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $164.15.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $176.33 on Wednesday. The Hershey Company has a one year low of $140.13 and a one year high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.18, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.37. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $160.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $176.75.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 EPS 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%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th will be given 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 yield of 3.11%. Hershey’s payout ratio is 50.28%.

Hershey 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.