Moors & Cabot Inc. Purchases 1,904 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 18.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,092 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,904 shares during the period. Moors & Cabot Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,223,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in HSY. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter worth $349,448,000. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 11.7% in the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,759 shares of the company’s stock worth $328,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 11.6% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 296,168 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,218,000 after acquiring an additional 30,789 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Hershey by 31.7% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 8,310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,549,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Finally, Sachetta LLC bought a new position in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth approximately $378,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of Hershey stock opened at $199.28 on Wednesday. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $178.82 and a 12 month high of $213.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.75, a P/E/G ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $195.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $193.91.

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

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.75%. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 54.31%.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total value of $286,245.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,531,729.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $6,531,729.24. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $644,912.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,538 shares of company stock valued at $667,793 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Citigroup downgraded Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $195.00 to $182.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $204.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $203.21.

Hershey 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.