Koshinski Asset Management Inc. Purchases 257 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Koshinski Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 6.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 4,272 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 257 shares during the quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $724,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new position in Hershey during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,337,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Hershey by 66.7% during the 3rd 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 last quarter. Woodstock Corp grew its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 1,780 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its stake 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 acquiring an additional 45,936 shares in the last quarter. 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 worth $1,423,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $159.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $180.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $175.00.

Hershey Trading Down 1.6 %

NYSE:HSY opened at $151.18 on Thursday. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $150.31 and a 52 week high of $211.92. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $170.78 and a 200 day moving average of $183.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.42, a PEG ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 0.38.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.62%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.13%.

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.