Guardian Asset Advisors LLC Has $766,000 Stock Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Guardian Asset Advisors LLC lessened its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 49.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 4,526 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,382 shares during the quarter. Guardian Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $766,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of HSY. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Hershey during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 248.0% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its holdings in Hershey by 61.7% in the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Hershey in the third quarter valued at about $46,000. Finally, City State Bank boosted its holdings in Hershey by 210.0% during the fourth quarter. City State Bank now owns 310 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on HSY shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup raised Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $159.00 to $154.00 in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.15.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $158.13 on Thursday. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $211.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.51, a PEG ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The business has a 50-day moving average of $163.10 and a 200-day moving average of $179.71.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.47%. Hershey’s payout ratio is 50.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.