Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Downgraded to “Sector Perform” at Royal Bank of Canada

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) was downgraded by equities researchers at Royal Bank of Canada from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Briefing.com reports. They currently have a $213.00 price target on the stock, down from their previous price target of $239.00. Royal Bank of Canada’s price objective points to a potential upside of 10.33% from the company’s current price.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Argus dropped their price target on Hershey from $315.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 11th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 31st. Barclays cut their price objective on Hershey from $265.00 to $218.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 12th. StockNews.com began coverage on Hershey in a research report on Thursday, October 5th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on Hershey from $300.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 17th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $246.05.

Hershey Price Performance

NYSE HSY opened at $193.06 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.09. The business’s fifty day moving average is $196.23 and its 200 day moving average is $226.76. The company has a market capitalization of $39.48 billion, a PE ratio of 20.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.35. Hershey has a fifty-two week low of $183.74 and a fifty-two week high of $276.88.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 26th. The company reported $2.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.13. Hershey had a return on equity of 54.74% and a net margin of 17.11%. The company had revenue of $3.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.17 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Hershey will post 9.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.00, for a total value of $310,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 35,816 shares in the company, valued at $7,413,912. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.00, for a total transaction of $310,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 35,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,413,912. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Pamela M. Arway sold 182 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.56, for a total value of $35,409.92. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 15,562 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,027,742.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,682 shares of company stock valued at $953,275 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Blair William & Co. IL grew its stake in Hershey by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 30,767 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,665,000 after purchasing an additional 916 shares during the last quarter. Dakota Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Hershey in the first quarter valued at approximately $238,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Hershey by 28.8% in the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,566 shares of the company’s stock worth $339,000 after buying an additional 350 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Hershey by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,057,990 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,045,383,000 after buying an additional 216,715 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. lifted its stake in Hershey by 10.8% during the 1st quarter. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. now owns 32,183 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,972,000 after acquiring an additional 3,129 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.47% of the company’s stock.

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; pantry items, such as baking ingredients, toppings, beverages, and sundae syrups; and snack items comprising spreads, bars, snack bites, mixes, popcorn, and pretzels.