Cerity Partners LLC Buys 17,654 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 63.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,606 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 17,654 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC's holdings in Hershey were worth $8,747,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 49.9% during the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 55,647 shares of the company's stock worth $10,672,000 after buying an additional 18,515 shares in the last quarter. Nwam LLC bought a new position in Hershey during the third quarter worth about $329,000. Meridian Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey in the 3rd quarter worth about $334,000. Studio Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 17.8% in the third quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC now owns 2,077 shares of the company's stock valued at $398,000 after buying an additional 314 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Hershey by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,387,715 shares of the company's stock worth $841,476,000 after acquiring an additional 109,336 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on HSY. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Citigroup lowered Hershey from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $195.00 to $182.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Hershey from $188.00 to $180.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Hershey from $163.00 to $161.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Hershey in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a "sell" rating and a $165.00 price objective for the company. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $189.33.

Hershey Stock Up 0.5 %

Hershey stock traded up $0.80 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $174.09. The stock had a trading volume of 1,060,544 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,698,985. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.23 billion, a PE ratio of 20.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 0.38. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $168.16 and a fifty-two week high of $211.92. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $183.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $190.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.15%. Hershey's payout ratio is 63.13%.

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.