US Bancorp DE Trims Stock Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

US Bancorp DE trimmed its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 403,599 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,808 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE owned about 0.20% of Hershey worth $68,350,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in HSY. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new position in Hershey in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,337,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 66.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,571,000 after purchasing an additional 389,404 shares during the last quarter. Woodstock Corp grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 34.8% during the 4th quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 6,896 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,168,000 after purchasing an additional 1,780 shares during the period. Elevate Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter worth about $1,939,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Hershey by 61.9% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 120,159 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,052,000 after buying an additional 45,936 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSY has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays cut their target price on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $178.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Hershey presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.15.

Hershey Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $172.68 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $211.92. The company’s 50 day moving average is $160.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $177.17. The company has a market cap of $34.94 billion, a PE ratio of 15.84, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. Equities analysts predict that The 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 Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.