Corebridge Financial Inc. Decreases Stock Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Corebridge Financial Inc. trimmed its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 5.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 35,200 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,053 shares during the quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $5,961,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A grew its holdings in Hershey by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A now owns 3,240 shares of the company’s stock valued at $549,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 5,438 shares of the company’s stock valued at $921,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Waterfront Wealth Inc. increased its position in Hershey by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 5,744 shares of the company’s stock worth $973,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. raised its stake in Hershey by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. now owns 3,987 shares of the company’s stock worth $675,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Napatree Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Hershey by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Napatree Capital LLC now owns 3,926 shares of the company’s stock valued at $665,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on HSY. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Hershey in a research note on Monday, March 24th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $183.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Citigroup raised shares of Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $159.00 to $154.00 in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $162.50.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $169.87 on Friday. 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 company has a market cap of $34.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $164.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $173.84. The Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $140.13 and a 1-year high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its earnings results 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 net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. Analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.23%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.28%.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In related 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 transaction of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.