Geneva Partners LLC Invests $2.69 Million in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Geneva Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 12,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,688,000. Hershey accounts for about 1.3% of Geneva Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of HSY. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Hershey in the 1st quarter worth approximately $305,000. Clare Market Investments LLC bought a new position in Hershey in the 1st quarter valued at $1,025,000. O Domhnaill Enterprises Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. O Domhnaill Enterprises Inc. now owns 11,727 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,438,000 after buying an additional 501 shares during the period. Appleton Partners Inc. MA increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 8.9% in the 1st quarter. Appleton Partners Inc. MA now owns 23,684 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,924,000 after buying an additional 1,934 shares during the period. Finally, Bogart Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Hershey by 4.1% during the first quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 1,889 shares of the company’s stock worth $393,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $175.98 on Wednesday. Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $160.07 and a 52-week high of $239.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.24. The stock has a market cap of $35.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.11. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $184.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $197.93.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.31. Hershey had a net margin of 9.12% and a return on equity of 28.98%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.03 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.09 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 8.43 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a $1.452 dividend. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is 108.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HSY has been the topic of several recent research reports. Zacks Research cut Hershey from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. TD Cowen raised Hershey from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $211.00 to $204.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $247.00 to $227.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $217.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.43, for a total transaction of $260,145.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 54,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,485,753.85. This trade represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.08% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Hershey

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a leading North American chocolatier and snack manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The company develops, produces and markets a wide range of confectionery and snack products for retail, foodservice and international customers. Hershey’s business spans manufacturing, branded product marketing, packaging and distribution across grocery, convenience, mass merchant and e-commerce channels.

Hershey’s product portfolio centers on chocolate and sugar confectionery, including core brands such as Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses and Twizzlers, alongside non-chocolate snacks and confectionery brands.