Ledyard National Bank Reduces Stock Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Ledyard National Bank reduced its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 14.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,869 shares of the company’s stock after selling 310 shares during the period. Ledyard National Bank’s holdings in Hershey were worth $348,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in HSY. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Highlander Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 125.3% during the 4th quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on HSY shares. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Hershey from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $191.00 to $183.00 in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $213.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $179.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $212.78.

Hershey Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of NYSE HSY traded up $4.96 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $197.43. 1,584,585 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,953,171. 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 company has a market cap of $40.27 billion, a PE ratio of 21.77, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.34. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $191.77 and a 200-day moving average price of $190.64. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $178.82 and a 12 month high of $276.88.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.72 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 16.67% and a return on equity of 51.79%. Hershey’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.02 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.78%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This is a positive change from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. Hershey’s payout ratio is 60.55%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total transaction of $278,745.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 38,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,196,824.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Hershey 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $369,681.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total transaction of $278,745.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 38,728 shares in the company, valued at $7,196,824.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 3,453 shares of company stock valued at $665,534. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

About Hershey

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.