Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC Takes $6.23 Million Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 36,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,230,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Hershey by 30,461.7% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 573,643 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,100,130,000 after acquiring an additional 571,766 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 66.7% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,571,000 after purchasing an additional 389,404 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in Hershey by 5.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,348,127,000 after purchasing an additional 386,670 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Hershey by 31.3% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 586,565 shares of the company’s stock valued at $112,491,000 after buying an additional 139,831 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Hershey by 2.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,387,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $841,476,000 after buying an additional 109,336 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on HSY. Mizuho lowered their price target on Hershey from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. 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. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $168.00 to $153.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $171.79.

Hershey Trading Down 2.6 %

Shares of HSY stock opened at $149.80 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.31 billion, a PE ratio of 17.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.85. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $147.60 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $168.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $182.73.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.66%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.13%.

Hershey Company 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.