Capital International Sarl Acquires 14,124 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Capital International Sarl lifted its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 526.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 16,809 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 14,124 shares during the period. Capital International Sarl's holdings in Hershey were worth $2,847,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp grew its holdings in Hershey by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp now owns 4,500 shares of the company's stock worth $762,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 2.2% in 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. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 5,546 shares of the company's stock worth $939,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in Hershey by 42.5% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 238 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in Hershey by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 5,438 shares of the company's stock worth $921,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of Hershey 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares of the company's stock, valued at $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HSY has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays lowered 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, February 10th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Hershey from $173.00 to $165.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Bernstein Bank decreased their target price on Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their target price on Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $163.35.

Hershey Price Performance

NYSE:HSY traded up $0.93 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $167.40. The stock had a trading volume of 1,002,430 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,786,517. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.36, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.28. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $168.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $170.10. 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 Hershey Company has a one year low of $140.13 and a one year 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 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. As a group, analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th were issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.27%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

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.