SlateStone Wealth LLC Sells 243 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

SlateStone Wealth LLC lowered its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 4.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,788 shares of the company’s stock after selling 243 shares during the period. SlateStone Wealth LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,079,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. bought a new stake in Hershey during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new stake in Hershey during the third quarter worth about $25,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Hershey during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. First Financial Corp IN bought a new stake in Hershey during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Highlander Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Hershey by 125.3% during the fourth quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Hershey from $185.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. BNP Paribas cut shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $208.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Hershey from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $235.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted 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 research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $223.33.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total value of $89,938.62. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $369,681.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.90, for a total value of $296,850.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 40,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,961,121.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was 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 directly owns 1,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $369,681.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Price Performance

Hershey stock traded up $0.89 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $187.22. 753,887 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,960,638. The company has a market cap of $38.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.59, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.34. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $192.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $190.81. 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 Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $178.82 and a 12-month high of $276.88.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $2.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 prior year, the firm earned $2.02 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.93%. This is an increase from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.55%.

Hershey Company 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.