Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. Raises Stock Position in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 3.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 27,905 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,038 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $4,631,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in Hershey in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $224,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 1st quarter valued at $55,269,000. Harvest Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 39.7% during the 1st quarter. Harvest Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,859 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,857,000 after acquiring an additional 3,087 shares in the last quarter. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 106.1% in the first quarter. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA now owns 145,457 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,745,000 after acquiring an additional 74,894 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jump Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 694.5% during the first quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 16,264 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,782,000 after acquiring an additional 14,217 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.56, for a total value of $269,340.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 55,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,933,079.64. This trade represents a 2.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 6,000 shares of company stock worth $1,103,640 in the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Evercore ISI restated a “positive” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, October 31st. DA Davidson reduced their price target on Hershey from $188.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 10th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Hershey from $175.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $167.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Hershey from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $179.74.

Hershey Stock Up 2.0%

HSY opened at $186.24 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $37.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.53. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $183.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $176.91. Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $208.03.

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

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 17th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 81.91%.

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.