Hershey Company (The) $HSY Shares Purchased by Markel Group Inc.

Markel Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 11.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 75,000 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,500 shares during the quarter. Markel Group Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $15,592,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $272,506,000. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in Hershey by 546.6% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,057,476 shares of the company’s stock worth $192,439,000 after acquiring an additional 893,940 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in Hershey by 150.1% during the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,278,881 shares of the company’s stock valued at $232,731,000 after acquiring an additional 767,478 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Hershey by 4,478.5% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 586,141 shares of the company’s stock valued at $106,666,000 after acquiring an additional 573,339 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Readystate Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at about $72,001,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of Hershey stock traded up $2.50 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $174.15. The stock had a trading volume of 2,420,439 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,286,708. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $183.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $197.54. Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $161.29 and a 12-month high of $239.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The firm has a market cap of $35.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.11.

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

Hershey Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on HSY. Mizuho lowered their target price on Hershey from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Evercore raised Hershey from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $255.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Hershey from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. DA Davidson upgraded Hershey to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, BTIG Research began coverage on Hershey in a research note on Monday, April 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $214.78.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.43, for a total transaction of $260,145.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 54,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,485,753.85. This represents a 2.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Company Profile

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.