Insider Selling: The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) CAO Sells $41,144.00 in Stock

The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Hershey Stock Up 4.5 %

HSY stock opened at $152.43 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $140.13 and a 1-year high of $211.92. The stock has a market cap of $30.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.56, a P/E/G ratio of 4.30 and a beta of 0.38. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $165.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $180.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued 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 net margin of 16.17% and a return on equity of 43.24%. Analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.06 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

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 paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 63.13%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $178.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research note on Monday. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup lowered their target price on Hershey from $165.00 to $159.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $167.10.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hershey

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey in the third quarter worth $25,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Hershey by 248.0% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at about $46,000. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey during the third quarter valued at about $48,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

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.