Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Boosts Stake in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund increased its holdings in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 62.1% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 109,319 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 41,900 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Hershey were worth $22,726,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of HSY. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Hershey in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Reflection Asset Management bought a new position in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new position in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Manchester Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 123.0% during the 4th quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 165 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.43, for a total transaction of $260,145.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 54,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,485,753.85. This represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $182.20 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.93, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.24. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $185.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $198.02. Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $160.07 and a 52-week high of $239.48.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.31. Hershey had a net margin of 9.12% and a return on equity of 28.98%. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.09 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 8.43 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were given a dividend of $1.452 per share. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. Hershey’s payout ratio is 108.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HSY has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $212.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $211.00 to $204.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Hershey from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $230.00 to $208.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $217.50.

About Hershey

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a leading North American chocolatier and snack manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The company develops, produces and markets a wide range of confectionery and snack products for retail, foodservice and international customers. Hershey’s business spans manufacturing, branded product marketing, packaging and distribution across grocery, convenience, mass merchant and e-commerce channels.

Hershey’s product portfolio centers on chocolate and sugar confectionery, including core brands such as Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses and Twizzlers, alongside non-chocolate snacks and confectionery brands.