PFG Investments LLC Acquires 394 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

PFG Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 18.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,496 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $423,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,348,127,000 after purchasing an additional 386,670 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Hershey by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,387,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $841,476,000 after buying an additional 109,336 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Hershey by 1.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,753,751 shares of the company’s stock valued at $717,606,000 after acquiring an additional 35,688 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Hershey by 66.7% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,571,000 after acquiring an additional 389,404 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 3.2% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 964,748 shares of the company’s stock valued at $185,027,000 after acquiring an additional 29,507 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on HSY shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $183.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Hershey from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Hershey from $165.00 to $159.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $171.79.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of HSY opened at $152.00 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $30.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 0.38. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $147.60 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $167.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $182.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.61%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 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.