Community Trust & Investment Co. Makes New $288,000 Investment in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Community Trust & Investment Co. bought a new position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 1,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $288,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 218.2% in the second quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the first quarter valued at $29,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 55.0% in the second quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the second quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the first quarter valued at $35,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $183.47 on Wednesday. The Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $178.82 and a 1-year high of $211.92. The business has a 50-day moving average of $193.41 and a 200-day moving average of $192.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The company has a market capitalization of $37.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.18, a PEG ratio of 5.44 and a beta of 0.37.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.01 EPS. Hershey’s quarterly revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 9.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were given a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s payout ratio is 54.31%.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $644,912.46. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HSY has been the topic of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Hershey in a research report on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $185.00 price objective on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Hershey from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $184.00 to $163.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Hershey from $188.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 14th. 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.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $193.50.

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.