Hsbc Holdings PLC Makes New Investment in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 356,753 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $62,664,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bard Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc acquired a new stake in Hershey in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE HSY opened at $185.77 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $178.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $195.00. Hershey Company has a one year low of $161.43 and a one year high of $239.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 1.18. The company has a market cap of $37.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.11.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.47. Hershey had a return on equity of 31.92% and a net margin of 12.24%.The company had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.63 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.21 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.360-8.520 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Hershey Company will post 8.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a $1.452 dividend. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 79.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 53,195 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,043,150. The trade was a 2.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on HSY. Evercore set a $225.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Hershey from $191.00 to $193.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $208.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and set a $201.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $215.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $204.78.

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.