RFG Advisory LLC Acquires 2,724 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

RFG Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 163.8% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 4,387 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,724 shares during the period. RFG Advisory LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $853,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. First Financial Corp IN acquired a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Highlander Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Hershey by 125.3% in the fourth quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on HSY. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $213.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $204.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Argus reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, BNP Paribas lowered shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $208.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $209.67.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.54, for a total value of $306,810.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 37,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,614,615.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hershey Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $182.09 on Monday. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $178.82 and a 52 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 capitalization of $36.82 billion, a PE ratio of 18.05, a PEG ratio of 4.07 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $194.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $192.30.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.33. Hershey had a net margin of 18.13% and a return on equity of 50.15%. The company had revenue of $3.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.96 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th were given a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.01%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.31%.

Hershey 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.