The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Bought by Park Avenue Securities LLC

Park Avenue Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 11.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 6,293 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 647 shares during the quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,066,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY grew its position in shares of Hershey by 0.8% in the third quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 7,355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,411,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey by 23.3% in the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 333 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Forum Financial Management LP grew its position in shares of Hershey by 1.6% in the third quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 4,130 shares of the company’s stock valued at $792,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey by 6.0% in the third quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 1,175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $225,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Finally, Northstar Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Hershey by 3.3% in the third quarter. Northstar Group Inc. now owns 2,239 shares of the company’s stock valued at $429,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HSY has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $159.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $176.42.

Hershey Price Performance

Hershey stock opened at $152.82 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $171.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $184.39. The company has a market capitalization of $30.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.31 and a beta of 0.38. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $150.31 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. 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.