Woodstock Corp Acquires 1,450 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Woodstock Corp raised its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 39.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,116 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,450 shares during the quarter. Woodstock Corp’s holdings in Hershey were worth $981,000 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 bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Hershey by 14.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,341,721 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,372,965,000 after acquiring an additional 2,158,912 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 6.5% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,487,565 shares of the company’s stock worth $289,327,000 after purchasing an additional 90,329 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 3.4% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 787,377 shares of the company’s stock worth $144,743,000 after purchasing an additional 25,780 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 23.2% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 783,128 shares of the company’s stock worth $143,962,000 after purchasing an additional 147,215 shares during the period. Finally, Confluence Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 297.9% in the second quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 717,831 shares of the company’s stock worth $131,959,000 after purchasing an additional 537,419 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE HSY opened at $185.98 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $195.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $193.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $178.82 and a 12-month high of $211.92. The firm has a market cap of $37.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.43, a PEG ratio of 5.44 and a beta of 0.37.

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

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.95%. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 54.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on HSY shares. Citigroup cut shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $195.00 to $182.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $230.00 to $205.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Hershey from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $184.00 to $163.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $195.68.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $644,912.46. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total transaction of $286,245.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,531,729.24. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $644,912.46. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.