Florida Financial Advisors LLC Has $699,000 Stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Florida Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 23.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 4,129 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 775 shares during the period. Florida Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $699,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. State Street Corp grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 386,670 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position 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 purchasing an additional 247,675 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,753,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $717,606,000 after purchasing an additional 35,688 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,571,000 after purchasing an additional 389,404 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp grew its holdings in Hershey by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 964,748 shares of the company’s stock valued at $185,027,000 after buying an additional 29,507 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSE HSY opened at $168.30 on Tuesday. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $140.13 and a 12 month high of $211.92. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $162.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $174.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company has a market capitalization of $34.07 billion, a PE ratio of 15.44, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Research analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 3.26%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on HSY shares. Piper Sandler lowered Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $164.67.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at approximately $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.