SBI Securities Co. Ltd. Acquires New Shares in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $141,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in Hershey by 20.6% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 12,403 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,100,000 after buying an additional 2,118 shares during the period. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth about $73,000. Hickory Point Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth about $439,000. Jacobi Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Hershey by 27.4% during the 4th quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 6,104 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,034,000 after buying an additional 1,311 shares during the period. Finally, Metis Global Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Hershey by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 12,170 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,061,000 after buying an additional 291 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of Hershey stock opened at $185.11 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a one year low of $140.13 and a one year high of $211.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.98, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $161.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $176.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.64.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.96%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HSY has been the topic of several recent research reports. TD Cowen cut their target price on Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Citigroup raised Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $159.00 to $154.00 in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $164.15.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.