American Century Companies Inc. Purchases 93,009 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 15.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 711,009 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 93,009 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 0.35% of Hershey worth $120,409,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Avestar Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 1,175 shares of the company's stock worth $225,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A lifted its stake in Hershey by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A now owns 3,240 shares of the company's stock worth $549,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,151 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,563,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 5,438 shares of the company's stock valued at $921,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Waterfront Wealth Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 5,744 shares of the company's stock worth $973,000 after buying an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company's stock.

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Insider Activity

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at approximately $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Hershey Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of HSY stock traded up $2.27 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $170.79. The company's stock had a trading volume of 754,862 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,741,882. The company has a market cap of $34.57 billion, a PE ratio of 15.67, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.96. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $163.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $174.30. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, beating 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, equities research analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th were paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.21%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSY has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group decreased their target price on Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Bernstein Bank cut their price objective on Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price objective on Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $162.50.

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.