The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Stock Holdings Reduced by Howland Capital Management LLC

Howland Capital Management LLC lowered its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 22.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,596 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,927 shares during the quarter. Howland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,117,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 5.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,348,127,000 after buying an additional 386,670 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 2.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,387,715 shares of the company’s stock worth $841,476,000 after buying an additional 109,336 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 1.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,753,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $717,606,000 after buying an additional 35,688 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted 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 worth $186,571,000 after buying an additional 389,404 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 3.2% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 964,748 shares of the company’s stock worth $185,027,000 after buying an additional 29,507 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Hershey in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “sell” rating and a $165.00 price target for the company. UBS Group reduced their price target on Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $166.35.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Trading Up 1.7 %

Hershey stock opened at $154.98 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $140.13 and a 12 month high of $211.92. The stock has a market cap of $31.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.37. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $164.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $180.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 6.77 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.54%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

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.