Ascent Group LLC Purchases 4,404 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Ascent Group LLC increased its position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 284.7% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 5,951 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,404 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $987,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. bought a new stake in Hershey during the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey by 129.5% during the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Fort Vancouver Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Hershey during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $34,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Hershey in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new position in Hershey in the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on HSY shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $173.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Hershey from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $155.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Hershey from $154.00 to $157.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Hershey from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $174.05.

Hershey Trading Up 3.2%

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $195.04 on Monday. Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $140.13 and a 1-year high of $208.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The business’s 50 day moving average is $185.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $173.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.90, a PEG ratio of 4.71 and a beta of 0.26.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.23. Hershey had a return on equity of 37.36% and a net margin of 13.54%.The firm had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.27 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.809-5.997 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.78%.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other news, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $240,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 38,068 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,852,240. This trade represents a 3.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.00, for a total transaction of $3,742,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 193,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,563,056. The trade was a 9.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 65,704 shares of company stock worth $12,206,910. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Hershey

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.