Van ECK Associates Corp Acquires 3,303 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 10.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,708 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,303 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Hershey were worth $6,134,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its position in Hershey by 218.2% in the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Hershey by 55.0% during the second quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Hershey during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey in the first quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Gradient Investments LLC raised its stake in Hershey by 71.9% during the 2nd quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 251 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $644,912.46. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hershey Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of HSY opened at $172.89 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $189.89 and its 200 day moving average is $192.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $171.67 and a 12-month high of $211.92. The company has a market capitalization of $34.97 billion, a PE ratio of 19.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.14 and a beta of 0.38.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.17%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Hershey from $188.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Hershey from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Argus lowered shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $230.00 to $205.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic began coverage on shares of Hershey in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “sell” rating and a $165.00 target price for the company. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $191.61.

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.