The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Sold by Leavell Investment Management Inc.

Leavell Investment Management Inc. decreased its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,744 shares of the company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Leavell Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,869,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norden Group LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey in the first quarter worth about $374,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 54.9% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 9,715 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,889,000 after acquiring an additional 3,445 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 239.2% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 22,035 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,286,000 after acquiring an additional 15,538 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 29.7% during the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,119 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,163,000 after acquiring an additional 2,544 shares during the period. Finally, Forsta AP Fonden raised its holdings in Hershey by 9.6% during the first quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 39,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,741,000 after purchasing an additional 3,500 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the transaction, 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group cut Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $226.00 to $209.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Citigroup cut shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $195.00 to $182.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Hershey in a research note on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $185.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $190.56.

Hershey Trading Up 1.6 %

NYSE:HSY opened at $175.67 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $35.54 billion, a PE ratio of 19.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 0.38. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $171.67 and a fifty-two week high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $189.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $192.13.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $2.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by ($0.16). Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The company had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.07 billion. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.12%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is 60.89%.

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.