Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Boosts Stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 62.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 49,407 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,968 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $9,610,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in HSY. Signet Financial Management LLC grew its stake in Hershey by 59.9% in the first quarter. Signet Financial Management LLC now owns 12,960 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,521,000 after purchasing an additional 4,854 shares during the last quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey in the 1st quarter worth approximately $58,000. TrueMark Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,217,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 24.8% during the 1st quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 824 shares of the company’s stock worth $160,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IAM Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey during the first quarter valued at approximately $201,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.93, for a total value of $274,395.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 35,728 shares in the company, valued at $6,535,723.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 4,500 shares of company stock valued at $859,950. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $183.83 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.22, a PEG ratio of 4.11 and a beta of 0.37. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $194.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $192.20. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $178.82 and a 12 month high of $251.73.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.74 by $0.33. Hershey had a net margin of 18.13% and a return on equity of 50.15%. The firm had revenue of $3.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.96 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.59 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th were paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.98%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on HSY. Argus reduced their price target on Hershey from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. BNP Paribas cut Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $208.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Hershey from $213.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Edward Jones reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $179.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, June 21st. One 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. According to MarketBeat, Hershey has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $209.67.

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.