Somerville Kurt F Sells 300 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Somerville Kurt F lowered its position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 11.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,400 shares of the company’s stock after selling 300 shares during the quarter. Somerville Kurt F’s holdings in Hershey were worth $398,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the first quarter worth $28,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC raised its position in Hershey by 129.5% during the 1st quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Fort Vancouver Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Hershey during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Hershey during the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.12, for a total transaction of $283,680.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 58,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,029,289.28. This represents a 2.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were 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 directly owned 193,624 shares in the company, valued at $37,563,056. This trade represents a 9.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 65,704 shares of company stock valued at $12,206,910. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on HSY. Wall Street Zen upgraded Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 9th. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Hershey from $173.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $174.05.

Hershey Stock Down 0.4%

Hershey stock opened at $194.38 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $39.41 billion, a PE ratio of 25.81, a PEG ratio of 4.72 and a beta of 0.26. Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $140.13 and a 12-month high of $208.03. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $185.84 and its 200 day moving average is $173.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

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

Hershey Dividend Announcement

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

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.