Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Invests $4.43 Million in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 24,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,431,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Syon Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 3,020 shares of the company’s stock worth $550,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Haverford Trust Co grew its stake in Hershey by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 6,796 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,237,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Hershey by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,561 shares of the company’s stock valued at $466,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC raised its holdings in Hershey by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 8,034 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,462,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC raised its holdings in Hershey by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,325 shares of the company’s stock valued at $241,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of HSY stock opened at $179.34 on Monday. Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $161.43 and a 1-year high of $239.48. The firm has a market cap of $36.03 billion, a PE ratio of 24.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.11. The company has a 50-day moving average of $179.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $194.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.66.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.47. Hershey had a net margin of 12.24% and a return on equity of 31.92%. The business had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.63 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.21 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.360-8.520 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 8.49 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a $1.452 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 79.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America lowered their target price on Hershey from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Hershey from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $212.00 to $206.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $191.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $204.78.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 53,195 shares in the company, valued at $9,043,150. This represents a 2.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.08% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.