Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. Lowers Stake in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. lessened its holdings in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 41.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 6,184 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,400 shares during the quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,157,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $234,386,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Hershey during the second quarter valued at $125,868,000. Scharf Investments LLC bought a new stake in Hershey in the second quarter worth $90,588,000. Equity Investment Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the second quarter worth $73,706,000. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 44.7% in the second quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 1,232,595 shares of the company’s stock worth $204,549,000 after acquiring an additional 380,512 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.51, for a total transaction of $282,765.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 53,819 shares in the company, valued at $10,145,419.69. The trade was a 2.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Stacy Taffet purchased 200 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $186.19 per share, with a total value of $37,238.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,744,786.49. The trade was a 2.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 6,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,102,725. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Down 1.7%

HSY opened at $197.68 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.55 and a beta of 0.18. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $184.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $182.81. Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $201.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 32.08%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.34 earnings per share. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.900-6.000 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th were issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 17th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 81.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays set a $210.00 price target on Hershey in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, December 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $181.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Hershey from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $195.00 to $211.00 in a report on Monday, December 15th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Hershey from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Hershey from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $189.53.

Hershey 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.