Connecticut Wealth Management LLC Increases Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Connecticut Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 34.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,501 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 384 shares during the period. Connecticut Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $280,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wealth Alliance boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 9.5% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 1,137 shares of the company’s stock valued at $212,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. AJOVista LLC bought a new position in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at $153,000. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. grew its holdings in Hershey by 1,263.3% during the 4th quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 15,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,816,000 after acquiring an additional 13,997 shares in the last quarter. Reliant Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter worth about $4,173,000. Finally, Silver Oak Securities Incorporated raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 78,757.1% in the 4th quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 5,520 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,029,000 after purchasing an additional 5,513 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Performance

HSY stock traded down $1.77 during trading on Monday, reaching $196.15. 1,006,910 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,979,500. The firm has a market cap of $40.00 billion, a PE ratio of 19.45, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $178.82 and a 1-year high of $275.89. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $191.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $190.76.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $3.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 18.13% and a return on equity of 50.15%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.96 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSY has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Hershey from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Hershey from $200.00 to $179.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 15th. Barclays raised their price objective on Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. BNP Paribas lowered shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $208.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut shares of Hershey from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $191.00 to $183.00 in a report on Monday, February 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $213.06.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total transaction of $278,745.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 38,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,196,824.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.