Truist Financial Corp Has $43.71 Million Stock Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Truist Financial Corp reduced its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 38.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 258,125 shares of the company’s stock after selling 158,735 shares during the quarter. Truist Financial Corp owned 0.13% of Hershey worth $43,713,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the third quarter valued at about $1,337,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 66.7% during 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 in the last quarter. Woodstock Corp lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 34.8% during the fourth quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 6,896 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,168,000 after purchasing an additional 1,780 shares in the last quarter. Elevate Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,939,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 61.9% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 120,159 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,052,000 after purchasing an additional 45,936 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE HSY opened at $163.08 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $161.78 and its 200-day moving average is $178.81. The firm has a market cap of $33.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.37. The Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $140.13 and a 12-month high of $211.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. Sell-side analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.36%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSY has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $178.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $164.15.

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.