Novem Group Takes $997,000 Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Novem Group acquired a new stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm acquired 5,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $997,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Montag & Caldwell LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its stake in Hershey by 248.0% during the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on HSY. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Bernstein Bank lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $173.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $161.40.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of HSY stock opened at $155.73 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $165.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $167.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.96. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $140.13 and a 1 year high of $209.65. The firm has a market cap of $31.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.29, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.81 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. The business’s revenue was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.07 EPS. Analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.52%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.57%.

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.