Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Stock Price Target Lowered at Barclays

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its price target reduced by Barclays from $178.00 to $171.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Barclays‘s price target would suggest a potential downside of 0.14% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $212.00 to $206.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $183.00 to $166.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $215.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $170.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Hershey presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $193.81.

Hershey Stock Up 3.4%

Hershey stock traded up $5.63 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $171.24. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,996,574 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,844,942. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.24. Hershey has a 12 month low of $156.16 and a 12 month high of $239.48. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $169.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $189.03. The company has a market capitalization of $34.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.08.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $2.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.53. Hershey had a return on equity of 37.12% and a net margin of 14.63%. The company had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.25 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.30 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Hershey will post 8.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 126.4% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 84,215 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,508,000 after purchasing an additional 47,017 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 125.9% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 196,337 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,447,000 after purchasing an additional 109,418 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in Hershey in the second quarter valued at $62,664,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in Hershey in the second quarter valued at $274,871,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Hershey by 11.8% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,128,711 shares of the company’s stock worth $198,032,000 after purchasing an additional 118,825 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Company Profile

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a global confectionery and snack food manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Founded by Milton S. Hershey in 1894, the company began as a chocolate producer and has grown into one of the largest branded snack businesses in North America.

Hershey’s portfolio includes chocolate, non-chocolate confectionery, gum and mints, and salty snacks. Its brands include Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses, Kit Kat in the United States under license from Nestlé, Jolly Rancher, Twizzlers, Ice Breakers, SkinnyPop and Dot’s Pretzels.