The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Sold by Entropy Technologies LP

Entropy Technologies LP decreased its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 42.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,705 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,745 shares during the quarter. Entropy Technologies LP’s holdings in Hershey were worth $627,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in Hershey by 30,461.7% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 573,643 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,100,130,000 after purchasing an additional 571,766 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,571,000 after purchasing an additional 389,404 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 5.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,348,127,000 after buying an additional 386,670 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of Hershey by 31.3% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 586,565 shares of the company’s stock valued at $112,491,000 after buying an additional 139,831 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 2.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,387,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $841,476,000 after buying an additional 109,336 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $158.34 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $140.13 and a 1-year high of $211.92. The company has a market capitalization of $32.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.53, a PEG ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.37. The business has a 50-day moving average of $163.92 and a 200-day moving average of $180.11.

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

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Piper Sandler cut shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson dropped their target price on Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $165.05.

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.