CENTRAL TRUST Co Trims Stock Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

CENTRAL TRUST Co lessened its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 7.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,018 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,112 shares during the quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co’s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,497,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in Hershey by 10.0% in the 2nd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 320,680 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,951,000 after purchasing an additional 29,246 shares during the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 179.4% in the 1st quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 6,958 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,353,000 after buying an additional 4,468 shares during the period. Oak Harvest Investment Services acquired a new position in Hershey during the 1st quarter worth about $5,383,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Hershey by 119.8% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 91,766 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,633,000 after acquiring an additional 50,014 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in Hershey by 239.2% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 22,035 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,286,000 after acquiring an additional 15,538 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $182.20 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $193.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $192.88. The stock has a market cap of $36.85 billion, a PE ratio of 18.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.44 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $178.82 and a 52-week high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.01 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.01%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $644,912.46. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on HSY shares. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $204.00 to $202.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Argus cut shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Hershey in a research note on Tuesday. They issued a “sell” rating and a $165.00 price objective on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Citigroup downgraded Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $195.00 to $182.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $192.80.

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.