Hershey Company (The) $HSY Shares Sold by SevenBridge Financial Group LLC

SevenBridge Financial Group LLC lowered its position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 16.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 19,901 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,958 shares during the period. SevenBridge Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $3,548,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Hershey by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 286,934 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,671,000 after acquiring an additional 1,388 shares during the last quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $22,680,000. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in shares of Hershey by 6.7% in the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 1,605,628 shares of the company’s stock valued at $300,333,000 after purchasing an additional 101,305 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Inc. CA increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 18.4% in the third quarter. Capital International Inc. CA now owns 75,160 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,059,000 after purchasing an additional 11,691 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 18.3% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 223,704 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,844,000 after purchasing an additional 34,556 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, SVP Jason Reiman sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total value of $452,140.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 41,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,277,008.52. The trade was a 4.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.66, for a total transaction of $329,490.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 50,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,162,901.54. This trade represents a 2.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 10,000 shares of company stock worth $2,153,645 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Price Performance

NYSE:HSY opened at $217.70 on Thursday. Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $150.04 and a 52 week high of $239.48. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $209.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $192.86. The company has a market capitalization of $44.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.97 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 27.90% and a net margin of 7.55%.The company’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.69 EPS. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.520 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be paid a dividend of $1.452 per share. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. This is a boost from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. Hershey’s payout ratio is 133.87%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Hershey from $195.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. DA Davidson set a $243.00 price target on Hershey in a report on Friday, February 6th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $249.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $185.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $222.21.

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.