SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC Raises Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 21.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,703 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 298 shares during the quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $288,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new position in Hershey in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,337,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 66.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,571,000 after purchasing an additional 389,404 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in Hershey by 61.9% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 120,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,052,000 after buying an additional 45,936 shares in the last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic boosted its stake in Hershey by 55.6% during the fourth quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 8,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,423,000 after buying an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clark & Stuart Inc purchased a new stake in Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at $654,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on HSY. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Hershey in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “sell” rating and a $165.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $176.42.

Hershey Trading Down 0.8 %

NYSE HSY opened at $152.82 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market cap of $30.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.61, a PEG ratio of 4.31 and a beta of 0.38. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $171.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $184.39. The Hershey Company has a one year low of $150.31 and a one year high of $211.92.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.59%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.13%.

Hershey 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.