The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Bought by Empowered Funds LLC

Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 42.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 36,972 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,053 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $6,261,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 55.1% in the fourth quarter. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC now owns 5,492 shares of the company’s stock valued at $930,000 after acquiring an additional 1,952 shares during the period. Advisors Preferred LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at $430,000. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Hershey by 641.1% during the 4th quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 60,407 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,230,000 after purchasing an additional 52,256 shares during the period. Almanack Investment Partners LLC. increased its stake in Hershey by 12.8% in the fourth quarter. Almanack Investment Partners LLC. now owns 1,723 shares of the company’s stock valued at $292,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. Finally, Conning Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 21.4% in the fourth quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 2,464 shares of the company’s stock valued at $417,000 after buying an additional 435 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hershey Price Performance

Hershey stock opened at $154.52 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $164.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $180.38. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $211.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.27 billion, a PE ratio of 14.18, a P/E/G ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.37.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.55%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSY has been the topic of a number of research reports. DA Davidson lowered their price target on Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Piper Sandler lowered Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $178.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $165.05.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at approximately $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.