American Century Companies Inc. Purchases 93,009 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 15.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 711,009 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 93,009 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $120,409,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at about $80,978,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in 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 buying an additional 389,404 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 5.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,348,127,000 after buying an additional 386,670 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,635,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $785,003,000 after buying an additional 247,675 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of Hershey by 31.3% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 586,565 shares of the company’s stock worth $112,491,000 after acquiring an additional 139,831 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Performance

HSY opened at $167.38 on Monday. 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 Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $140.13 and a 52-week high of $211.92. The firm has a market cap of $33.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The business’s fifty day moving average is $162.61 and its 200-day moving average is $174.80.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. Sell-side analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.28%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on HSY shares. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $163.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.