The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Bought by Valeo Financial Advisors LLC

Valeo Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 47.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 8,927 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,891 shares during the quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,736,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the first quarter valued at about $29,000. First Financial Corp IN acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Highlander Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.93, for a total value of $274,395.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 35,728 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,535,723.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In the last quarter, insiders sold 4,500 shares of company stock worth $859,950. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on HSY shares. 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. Wells Fargo & Company dropped 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, June 21st. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $179.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Barclays decreased 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 note on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, Edward Jones reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, April 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $209.67.

Hershey Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE HSY opened at $183.75 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $178.82 and a 52 week high of $251.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.16 billion, a PE ratio of 18.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.36. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $194.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $192.22.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $3.07 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 analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.96 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

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

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.