IFP Advisors Inc Purchases 4,333 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 346.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,584 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 4,333 shares during the quarter. IFP Advisors Inc’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,016,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in Hershey by 240.0% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,262,671 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,183,000 after buying an additional 891,287 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Hershey by 121.2% in the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,104,299 shares of the company’s stock valued at $206,559,000 after buying an additional 605,048 shares in the last quarter. Candlestick Capital Management LP bought a new position in Hershey in the third quarter valued at approximately $64,469,000. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. bought a new position in Hershey in the third quarter valued at approximately $44,464,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Hershey by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,067,235 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,469,855,000 after buying an additional 191,671 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on HSY shares. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. DA Davidson cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $230.00 to $208.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $249.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $240.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $217.78.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.10, for a total transaction of $291,150.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 57,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,198,599.50. The trade was a 2.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Rohit Grover sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total transaction of $791,245.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 34,568 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,814,787.76. The trade was a 9.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 8,500 shares of company stock worth $1,859,600. Insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Price Performance

NYSE HSY opened at $194.64 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $152.21 and a 12-month high of $239.48. The company has a market capitalization of $39.48 billion, a PE ratio of 36.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.07. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $199.60 and its 200-day moving average is $197.74.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.31. Hershey had a net margin of 9.12% and a return on equity of 28.98%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.03 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.09 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Hershey Company will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a $1.452 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 108.19%.

Hershey Company Profile

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a leading North American chocolatier and snack manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The company develops, produces and markets a wide range of confectionery and snack products for retail, foodservice and international customers. Hershey’s business spans manufacturing, branded product marketing, packaging and distribution across grocery, convenience, mass merchant and e-commerce channels.

Hershey’s product portfolio centers on chocolate and sugar confectionery, including core brands such as Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses and Twizzlers, alongside non-chocolate snacks and confectionery brands.