Precedent Wealth Partners LLC Has $782,000 Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Precedent Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 7.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,078 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 289 shares during the period. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $782,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of HSY. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its stake in Hershey by 218.2% during the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the first quarter worth $29,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 55.0% during the second quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in Hershey in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Hershey in the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Performance

HSY opened at $185.68 on Friday. 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 business has a 50 day moving average of $194.01 and a 200-day moving average of $193.18. The stock has a market cap of $37.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.40, a PEG ratio of 5.44 and a beta of 0.37.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced 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). Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.01 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.95%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on HSY. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Hershey from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $184.00 to $163.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Argus lowered shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $195.00.

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; 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.