DnB Asset Management AS Boosts Stock Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

DnB Asset Management AS increased its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 10.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 36,771 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,570 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Hershey were worth $6,227,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter worth approximately $80,978,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Hershey by 66.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,571,000 after buying an additional 389,404 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in Hershey by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,348,127,000 after buying an additional 386,670 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Hershey by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,635,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $785,003,000 after acquiring an additional 247,675 shares during the period. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at about $21,439,000. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of HSY stock opened at $169.87 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $34.38 billion, a PE ratio of 15.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $140.13 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $164.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $173.67. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. Research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.23%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.28%.

Insider Activity at Hershey

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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on HSY. Bernstein Bank cut their target price on Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $159.00 to $154.00 in a report on Friday, February 7th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $162.50.

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.