Ingalls & Snyder LLC Has $413,000 Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Ingalls & Snyder LLC increased its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 10.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,438 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the period. Ingalls & Snyder LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $413,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey during the third quarter worth $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 248.0% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey during the third quarter worth $46,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 61.7% during the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, City State Bank grew 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 during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HSY has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “sell” rating and a $165.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Bernstein Bank reduced 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, February 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $164.15.

Hershey Price Performance

NYSE:HSY opened at $160.92 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.96. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $163.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $179.71. The company has a market cap of $32.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.76, a P/E/G ratio of 4.89 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 released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s payout ratio is 50.28%.

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.