HBW Advisory Services LLC Sells 4,684 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

HBW Advisory Services LLC decreased its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 25.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,789 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,684 shares during the quarter. HBW Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,645,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of HSY. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 218.2% during the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 55.0% in the second quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in Hershey during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Hershey during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new stake in Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $644,912.46. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $644,912.46. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total transaction of $286,245.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,531,729.24. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hershey Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE HSY traded up $0.37 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $191.36. The stock had a trading volume of 389,006 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,712,190. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $196.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $193.92. The firm has a market cap of $38.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.93, a P/E/G ratio of 5.67 and a beta of 0.37. The Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $178.82 and a 52-week high of $211.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.01 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HSY has been the topic of several analyst reports. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Barclays cut their price objective on Hershey from $204.00 to $202.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Argus cut Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Hershey from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $184.00 to $163.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Hershey in a research note on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $185.00 price objective on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $198.63.

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.