Piper Sandler Reiterates “Neutral” Rating for Hershey (NYSE:HSY)

Hershey (NYSE:HSY)‘s stock had its “neutral” rating reaffirmed by investment analysts at Piper Sandler in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $179.00 price objective on the stock. Piper Sandler’s target price suggests a potential downside of 1.70% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $204.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Argus decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $213.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Edward Jones reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $209.67.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $182.09 on Friday. Hershey has a fifty-two week low of $178.82 and a fifty-two week high of $261.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.97. The company has a market cap of $36.82 billion, a PE ratio of 18.05, a P/E/G ratio of 4.07 and a beta of 0.37. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $194.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $192.28.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.33. The company had revenue of $3.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 18.13% and a return on equity of 50.15%. Hershey’s revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.96 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Hershey will post 9.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total value of $278,745.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 38,728 shares in the company, valued at $7,196,824.24. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In the last three months, insiders have sold 4,500 shares of company stock worth $882,405. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Wealth Alliance grew its stake in Hershey by 9.5% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 1,137 shares of the company’s stock valued at $212,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. AJOVista LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $153,000. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. lifted its position in Hershey by 1,263.3% during the fourth quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 15,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,816,000 after buying an additional 13,997 shares in the last quarter. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC acquired a new position in Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $2,332,000. Finally, Reliant Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $4,173,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

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.