CWA Asset Management Group LLC Purchases New Stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 3,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $719,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 218.2% in the second quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 55.0% during the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new position in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on HSY shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $183.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group downgraded Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $226.00 to $209.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $190.56.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $175.67 on Monday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $189.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $192.17. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $171.67 and a 52 week high of $211.92. The company has a market cap of $35.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.24, a P/E/G ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $2.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.07 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 16.17% and a return on equity of 43.24%. Equities research analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 9.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.13%.

Hershey Company 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.