Parthenon LLC Has $4.44 Million Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Parthenon LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 829.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,165 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 21,565 shares during the period. Parthenon LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $4,442,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 20.6% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 316 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 3,661 shares of the company’s stock worth $683,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 13.3% during the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 486 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 1,673 shares of the company’s stock worth $308,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Advisors Network LLC increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 1,794 shares of the company’s stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total value of $286,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,531,729.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total value of $286,245.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at $6,531,729.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $644,912.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,538 shares of company stock valued at $667,793 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on HSY shares. Argus lowered shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $237.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $204.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $203.21.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE HSY opened at $198.48 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $178.82 and a 52-week high of $213.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.86. The company has a market capitalization of $40.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.67, a P/E/G ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a fifty day moving average of $194.77 and a 200-day moving average of $193.56.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.17). The business had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.01 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.76%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.31%.

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.