The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Stock Holdings Lowered by Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC

Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 57.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,198 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,564 shares during the period. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,274,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. First Financial Corp IN acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Highlander Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Hershey by 125.3% in the 4th quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on HSY shares. BNP Paribas cut shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $208.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Hershey from $213.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Hershey from $185.00 to $193.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Hershey from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $212.78.

Hershey Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of HSY traded up $0.98 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $194.68. 405,998 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,951,250. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $178.82 and a twelve month high of $276.71. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $191.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $190.68. The stock has a market cap of $39.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.33.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.07. Hershey had a return on equity of 51.79% and a net margin of 16.67%. The company had revenue of $2.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.72 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.02 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This is a positive change from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.81%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total value of $278,745.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 38,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,196,824.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total transaction of $278,745.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 38,728 shares in the company, valued at $7,196,824.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total value of $89,938.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $369,681.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,453 shares of company stock worth $665,534 in the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.