Financial Advocates Investment Management Has $364,000 Stock Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Financial Advocates Investment Management lifted its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 89.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,979 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 934 shares during the quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management’s holdings in Hershey were worth $364,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 218.2% during the second quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Hershey during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Hershey in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Hershey in the first quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on HSY. Argus lowered shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $179.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Hershey from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Hershey from $210.00 to $204.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hershey has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $202.79.

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 transaction of $274,395.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 35,728 shares in the company, valued at $6,535,723.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $644,912.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.93, for a total transaction of $274,395.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 35,728 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,535,723.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,538 shares of company stock valued at $667,793. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $191.70 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $178.82 and a fifty-two week high of $219.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.00, a PEG ratio of 4.96 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The business has a 50-day moving average of $191.72 and a 200-day moving average of $193.19.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.01 earnings per share. Hershey’s quarterly revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.31%.

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.