Conning Inc. Increases Stock Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Conning Inc. boosted its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 21.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,464 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 435 shares during the quarter. Conning Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $417,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of HSY. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Hershey in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. 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 valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Hershey in the third quarter valued at about $46,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its position in Hershey by 61.7% in the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, City State Bank lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 210.0% during the fourth quarter. City State Bank now owns 310 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hershey Trading Up 1.7 %

NYSE:HSY opened at $154.98 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $31.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.22, a PEG ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.37. The business has a fifty day moving average of $164.38 and a 200-day moving average of $180.52. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $140.13 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.96.

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

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.54%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on HSY shares. Bernstein Bank dropped their target price on Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “sell” rating and a $165.00 target price for the company. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $180.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their target price on Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $166.35.

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.