Sanctuary Advisors LLC Sells 254 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Sanctuary Advisors LLC lowered its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,998 shares of the company’s stock after selling 254 shares during the quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $3,048,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Baillie Gifford & Co. boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 27.8% during the 4th quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 183,716 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,112,000 after purchasing an additional 39,951 shares in the last quarter. Kerusso Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Hershey by 116.1% in the fourth quarter. Kerusso Capital Management LLC now owns 15,919 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,696,000 after buying an additional 8,554 shares during the period. MOKAN Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,671,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in shares of Hershey by 129.7% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 7,122 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,206,000 after buying an additional 4,022 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 6,007 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,017,000 after acquiring an additional 520 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 in the company, valued at approximately $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSY has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $164.15.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE:HSY opened at $173.03 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $160.47 and its 200 day moving average is $178.21. The firm has a market cap of $35.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.87, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.96. The Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $140.13 and a 52-week high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. Research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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.