Skba Capital Management LLC Buys 3,300 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Skba Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 10.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 35,955 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,300 shares during the period. Skba Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $6,089,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HSY. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Hershey by 5.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $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 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,635,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $785,003,000 after acquiring an additional 247,675 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey by 1.0% in the 3rd 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. increased its stake 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 raised its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 29,507 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Price Performance

Hershey stock opened at $169.87 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $34.38 billion, a PE ratio of 15.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $164.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $173.67. The Hershey Company has a one year low of $140.13 and a one year high of $211.92.

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

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays lowered their price target on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $162.50.

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.