Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Grows Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 5.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,635,390 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 247,675 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 2.29% of Hershey worth $785,003,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Forum Financial Management LP boosted its position in Hershey by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 4,130 shares of the company’s stock worth $792,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Avestar Capital LLC boosted its position in Hershey by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 1,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Parthenon LLC boosted its position in Hershey by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Parthenon LLC now owns 24,240 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,649,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Hershey by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,151 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,563,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA boosted its position in Hershey by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 5,438 shares of the company’s stock worth $921,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HSY has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced 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, January 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $164.15.

Hershey Stock Up 3.5 %

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $178.77 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The business has a fifty day moving average of $160.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of $176.87. The stock has a market cap of $36.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.40, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.37. The Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $140.13 and a 52-week high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. On average, research analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.07%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the completion of 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 SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.