Cornerstone Advisors LLC Decreases Stake in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Cornerstone Advisors LLC lowered its stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 7.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 4,900 shares of the company’s stock after selling 400 shares during the quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $813,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in HSY. Fulton Bank N.A. raised its holdings in Hershey by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 1,312 shares of the company’s stock valued at $218,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Hershey by 12.3% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 567 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Ignite Planners LLC increased its position in shares of Hershey by 5.2% in the first quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 1,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $214,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. Optivise Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 5.1% during the second quarter. Optivise Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the company’s stock valued at $222,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 0.9% during the first quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. now owns 7,248 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,229,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Trading Up 0.7%

HSY opened at $179.36 on Monday. 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 Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $208.03. The stock has a market cap of $36.37 billion, a PE ratio of 23.82, a PEG ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 0.24. The business has a 50 day moving average of $183.94 and a 200-day moving average of $176.46.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 37.36% and a net margin of 13.54%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.34 earnings per share. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.900-6.000 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 17th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.52, for a total value of $281,280.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 56,819 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,654,698.88. This represents a 2.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on HSY. UBS Group reduced their price target on Hershey from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 31st. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Hershey from $204.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 31st. Piper Sandler raised Hershey from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $167.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $179.05.

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.