Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Raises Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP boosted its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 0.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,733 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 104 shares during the quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP’s holdings in Hershey were worth $5,730,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new position in Hershey during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Highlander Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Hershey by 125.3% in the fourth quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total value of $278,745.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 38,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,196,824.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 4,500 shares of company stock valued at $882,405. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE HSY traded down $4.04 on Friday, reaching $197.00. 1,880,152 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,852,444. The firm has a market cap of $39.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.52, a P/E/G ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.33. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $195.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $192.32. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $178.82 and a fifty-two week high of $263.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.74 by $0.33. The company had revenue of $3.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 18.13% and a return on equity of 50.15%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.96 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.78%. Hershey’s payout ratio is 54.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. BNP Paribas lowered shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $208.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $213.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, March 15th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $213.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $213.06.

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.