Smart Money Group LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Smart Money Group LLC raised its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 9.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,476 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 208 shares during the quarter. Smart Money Group LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $419,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new stake in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,337,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Hershey by 66.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,571,000 after purchasing an additional 389,404 shares during the period. Woodstock Corp lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 34.8% during the 4th quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 6,896 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,168,000 after buying an additional 1,780 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Hershey by 61.9% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 120,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,052,000 after buying an additional 45,936 shares during the period. Finally, Pensionfund Sabic grew its stake in Hershey by 55.6% in the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 8,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,423,000 after buying an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on HSY. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $180.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Sanford C. Bernstein cut Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $163.00 to $161.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hershey has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $176.42.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE HSY opened at $152.82 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $171.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $184.39. The Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $150.31 and a 12-month high of $211.92. The firm has a market cap of $30.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.61, a PEG ratio of 4.31 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.59%. Hershey’s payout ratio is 63.13%.

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.