The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Sold by abrdn plc

abrdn plc cut its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 7.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 52,143 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,216 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc's holdings in Hershey were worth $8,737,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,337,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 66.7% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company's stock worth $186,571,000 after buying an additional 389,404 shares in the last quarter. Woodstock Corp raised its holdings in Hershey by 34.8% in the 4th quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 6,896 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,168,000 after acquiring an additional 1,780 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in Hershey by 61.9% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 120,159 shares of the company's stock worth $23,052,000 after buying an additional 45,936 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pensionfund Sabic boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 55.6% during the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 8,400 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,423,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on HSY shares. Barclays cut their price objective on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Citigroup upgraded shares of Hershey from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their target price for the stock from $159.00 to $154.00 in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut Hershey from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $165.05.

Hershey Price Performance

HSY traded down $0.86 on Monday, hitting $154.08. 528,787 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,036,686. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.37. The business's fifty day moving average is $164.38 and its 200 day moving average is $180.38.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 6.77 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.28%.

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.