Chesley Taft & Associates LLC Reduces Stock Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Chesley Taft & Associates LLC cut its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,694 shares of the company’s stock after selling 125 shares during the quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,319,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Hershey during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its stake 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 acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its holdings in Hershey by 61.7% during the 4th 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. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Hershey in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new position in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at $48,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of HSY stock opened at $152.82 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.61, a PEG ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.38. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $171.86 and a 200 day moving average of $184.39. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $150.31 and a 52 week 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.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.13%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on HSY. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Hershey from $168.00 to $153.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. 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 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group dropped 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $176.42.

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.