Commonwealth Financial Services LLC Cuts Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Commonwealth Financial Services LLC trimmed its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,145 shares of the company’s stock after selling 70 shares during the period. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $220,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of HSY. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its position in Hershey by 218.2% during the second quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Hershey by 55.0% during the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in Hershey in the first quarter worth $29,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in Hershey during the second quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the first quarter valued at $35,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $644,912.46. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on HSY. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Hershey in a research note on Monday, August 12th. They set a “sell” rating and a $185.00 price target for the company. UBS Group cut Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $226.00 to $209.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Hershey from $179.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Hershey from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Argus downgraded Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $192.80.

Hershey Stock Up 0.4 %

NYSE HSY traded up $0.77 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $182.75. 64,120 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,674,647. The company has a market cap of $36.96 billion, a PE ratio of 18.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.44 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $178.82 and a 52 week high of $211.92. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $193.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $192.88.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. Hershey’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.01 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.00%. Hershey’s payout ratio is 54.31%.

About Hershey

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.