Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Has $109,000 Stock Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd lessened its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 14.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 586 shares of the company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in Hershey were worth $109,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wealth Alliance raised its holdings in Hershey by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 1,137 shares of the company’s stock worth $212,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the period. Reliant Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter worth about $4,173,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in Hershey by 91.4% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 91,779 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,111,000 after purchasing an additional 43,836 shares during the period. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. grew its holdings in Hershey by 94.7% in the 4th quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 17,480 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,237,000 after buying an additional 8,500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc bought a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,603,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total transaction of $89,938.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,862 shares in the company, valued at $369,681.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total value of $278,745.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 38,728 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,196,824.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total transaction of $89,938.62. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,862 shares in the company, valued at $369,681.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,453 shares of company stock worth $665,534 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Price Performance

Hershey stock opened at $187.17 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $38.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.34. The Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $178.82 and a 12-month high of $276.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $191.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $190.71.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.07. Hershey had a return on equity of 51.79% and a net margin of 16.67%. The company had revenue of $2.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.72 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.02 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This is a boost from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.93%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is 60.55%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on HSY. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $179.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Hershey from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $235.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Hershey from $213.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut Hershey from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $191.00 to $183.00 in a research report on Monday, February 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $223.33.

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.