The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Acquired by Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI grew its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 7.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,011 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,264 shares during the quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in Hershey were worth $6,341,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of HSY. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 143.7% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,465,403 shares of the company’s stock valued at $496,039,000 after acquiring an additional 1,453,819 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 18,495.8% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 295,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,125,000 after acquiring an additional 294,083 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.5% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,911,173 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,983,427,000 after purchasing an additional 222,960 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey during the third quarter worth $33,672,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 270.8% during the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 197,312 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,478,000 after purchasing an additional 144,103 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of HSY stock opened at $186.16 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $178.82 and a fifty-two week high of $276.88. The stock has a market cap of $37.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.34. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $191.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $190.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.72 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 51.79% and a net margin of 16.67%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.02 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This is a boost from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.90, for a total transaction of $296,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 40,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,961,121.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.90, for a total value of $296,850.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 40,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,961,121.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total value of $89,938.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,862 shares in the company, valued at $369,681.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 3,453 shares of company stock worth $665,534. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Edward Jones reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, April 19th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Hershey from $200.00 to $179.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Hershey from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $235.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley downgraded Hershey from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $191.00 to $183.00 in a report on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Hershey from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $223.33.

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.