The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Sold by Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd.

Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd. reduced its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 92.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,929 shares of the company’s stock after selling 24,811 shares during the period. Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $310,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Montag & Caldwell LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its holdings in Hershey by 248.0% during the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HSY has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased 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. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Piper Sandler downgraded Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson raised their target price on Hershey from $162.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $161.40.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of HSY stock opened at $156.68 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $166.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $167.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.71 billion, a PE ratio of 14.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $140.13 and a 52-week high of $209.65.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. The company’s revenue was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.07 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.57%.

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.