Quest Partners LLC Decreases Stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Quest Partners LLC cut its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 33.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,524 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,747 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $676,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. EntryPoint Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Hershey by 281.0% in the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 381 shares of the company’s stock valued at $74,000 after acquiring an additional 281 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 10.5% in the first quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,233 shares of the company’s stock worth $629,000 after purchasing an additional 307 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 18.4% during the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 20,822 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,050,000 after purchasing an additional 3,242 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in Hershey by 4.1% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 294,310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,243,000 after buying an additional 11,720 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in Hershey by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 16,748 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,257,000 after buying an additional 503 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Trading Down 0.1 %

HSY stock opened at $174.81 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $168.16 and a 12-month high of $211.92. The business’s 50-day moving average is $184.51 and its 200 day moving average is $191.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The stock has a market cap of $35.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.14, a PEG ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.38.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.13%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on HSY. UBS Group cut shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $226.00 to $209.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $183.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Hershey from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Barclays lowered their target price on Hershey from $202.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on Hershey from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $189.33.

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.