The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Acquired by Tempus Wealth Planning LLC

Tempus Wealth Planning LLC increased its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 1.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,000 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the quarter. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $972,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. boosted its stake in Hershey by 5.9% during the first quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 5,425 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,055,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Fluent Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,111,000. Check Capital Management Inc. CA purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the first quarter valued at about $25,010,000. Norden Group LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey during the first quarter worth about $5,610,000. Finally, KFG Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Hershey by 9.8% during the first quarter. KFG Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,587 shares of the company’s stock worth $698,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY traded down $0.90 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $183.75. The stock had a trading volume of 1,014,814 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,569,323. The firm has a market cap of $37.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.21, a PEG ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.36. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $178.82 and a fifty-two week high of $251.71. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $194.02 and a 200-day moving average of $192.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $3.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 50.15% and a net margin of 18.13%. The company’s revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.96 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th were paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.98%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.31%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total value of $278,745.00. Following 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 SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders sold 4,500 shares of company stock valued at $859,950. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $213.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 11th. BNP Paribas cut shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $208.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Edward Jones restated a “hold” rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, April 19th. Argus dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $209.67.

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.