MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB Has $1.59 Million Stake in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 75.2% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 9,076 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,895 shares during the quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,592,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of HSY. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Reflection Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. bought a new position in Hershey in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Price Performance

Hershey stock opened at $178.66 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $178.57 and its 200 day moving average is $196.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market cap of $36.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.11. Hershey Company has a one year low of $161.43 and a one year high of $239.48.

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

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 79.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 53,195 shares in the company, valued at $9,043,150. This represents a 2.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on HSY. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $240.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. BTIG Research began coverage on shares of Hershey in a research note on Monday, April 13th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $249.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $191.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $203.61.

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.