Hickory Point Bank & Trust Takes $439,000 Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Hickory Point Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm acquired 2,594 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $439,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Forum Financial Management LP grew its stake in Hershey by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 4,130 shares of the company’s stock worth $792,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Avestar Capital LLC grew its stake in 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 last quarter. Parthenon LLC grew its stake in Hershey by 0.3% in the third quarter. Parthenon LLC now owns 24,240 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,649,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Hershey by 1.0% in the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,151 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,563,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA grew its stake in Hershey by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 5,438 shares of the company’s stock valued at $921,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on HSY. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Bernstein Bank dropped their price target on Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Barclays dropped their price target on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group dropped their price target on Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.15.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Up 0.2 %

HSY opened at $172.68 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.96. The company has a fifty day moving average of $160.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $177.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.84, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.37.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. On average, research analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.17%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.28%.

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.