Achmea Investment Management B.V. Acquires 2,302 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Achmea Investment Management B.V. grew its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 16.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 16,145 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,302 shares during the period. Achmea Investment Management B.V.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,968,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of HSY. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its position in Hershey by 9.4% in the second quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 130,757 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,037,000 after buying an additional 11,181 shares in the last quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its holdings in Hershey by 50.7% in the 2nd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 9,398 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,725,000 after acquiring an additional 3,160 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC bought a new stake in Hershey during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $313,000. LPL Financial LLC raised its stake in Hershey by 10.0% during the 2nd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 320,680 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,951,000 after acquiring an additional 29,246 shares during the period. Finally, AdvisorShares Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Hershey by 7.4% during the second quarter. AdvisorShares Investments LLC now owns 31,774 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,797,000 after purchasing an additional 2,176 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hershey Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $200.83 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $178.82 and a 1-year high of $213.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The business’s 50 day moving average is $195.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $193.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.90, a PEG ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 0.37.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.01 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.5 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.73%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $644,912.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at $644,912.46. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total transaction of $286,245.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at $6,531,729.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,538 shares of company stock valued at $667,793. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on HSY shares. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup cut Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $195.00 to $182.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Argus downgraded Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Hershey from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $203.21.

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.