Toth Financial Advisory Corp Trims Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Toth Financial Advisory Corp reduced its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 11,721 shares of the company’s stock after selling 493 shares during the period. Toth Financial Advisory Corp’s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,248,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Hershey by 14.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,341,721 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,372,965,000 after purchasing an additional 2,158,912 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 6.5% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,487,565 shares of the company’s stock valued at $289,327,000 after acquiring an additional 90,329 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 787,377 shares of the company’s stock worth $144,743,000 after acquiring an additional 25,780 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its position 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 acquiring an additional 147,215 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Confluence Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Hershey by 297.9% in the second quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 717,831 shares of the company’s stock valued at $131,959,000 after purchasing an additional 537,419 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on HSY shares. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Barclays reduced their target price on Hershey from $204.00 to $202.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, UBS Group downgraded shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $226.00 to $209.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $195.00.

Hershey Stock Down 0.4 %

Hershey stock traded down $0.69 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $184.99. The stock had a trading volume of 417,477 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,677,868. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $194.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $193.11. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $178.82 and a 12 month high of $211.92. The stock has a market cap of $37.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.45, a P/E/G ratio of 5.44 and a beta of 0.37.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.01 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.47 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.96%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.31%.

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.