LGT Financial Advisors LLC Lowers Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

LGT Financial Advisors LLC reduced its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 59.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 402 shares of the company’s stock after selling 601 shares during the period. LGT Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $74,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of HSY. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Hershey by 14.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,341,721 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,372,965,000 after acquiring an additional 2,158,912 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at about $349,448,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 6.5% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,487,565 shares of the company’s stock worth $289,327,000 after acquiring an additional 90,329 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Vontobel Asset Management Inc. now owns 781,967 shares of the company’s stock valued at $151,715,000 after buying an additional 112,304 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Hershey by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 777,761 shares of the company’s stock worth $145,006,000 after purchasing an additional 19,018 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total transaction of $286,245.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at $6,531,729.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total transaction of $286,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at $6,531,729.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at $644,912.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,538 shares of company stock worth $667,793. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hershey Stock Performance

Hershey stock opened at $198.10 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.86. The company has a market capitalization of $40.06 billion, a PE ratio of 19.63, a P/E/G ratio of 5.60 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $193.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $193.29. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $178.82 and a fifty-two week high of $213.85.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.01 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HSY has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on Hershey from $237.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $202.79.

About Hershey

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.