abrdn plc Buys 25,608 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

abrdn plc raised its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 67.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 63,467 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 25,608 shares during the period. abrdn plc’s holdings in Hershey were worth $11,833,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Marshall Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC now owns 3,960 shares of the company’s stock valued at $792,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 754 shares of the company’s stock valued at $141,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC now owns 14,261 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,853,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 5,258 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,052,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Accurate Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,428 shares of the company’s stock valued at $272,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of HSY opened at $187.17 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The company has a market capitalization of $38.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.68, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.34. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $191.84 and a 200 day moving average of $190.71. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $178.82 and a 12 month high of $276.88.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $2.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.72 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 51.79% and a net margin of 16.67%. Hershey’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.02 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 dividend yield of 2.93%. This is an increase from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.55%.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $369,681.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $369,681.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total value of $278,745.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 38,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,196,824.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 3,453 shares of company stock valued at $665,534. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on HSY. Barclays upped their target price on Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Hershey from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $235.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, January 29th. Edward Jones reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, April 19th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Hershey from $200.00 to $179.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on Hershey from $213.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $223.33.

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.