Fortis Capital Advisors LLC Purchases 2,018 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Fortis Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 31.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,421 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,018 shares during the period. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Hershey were worth $1,426,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Hershey by 66.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company's stock worth $186,571,000 after purchasing an additional 389,404 shares during the period. Woodstock Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 34.8% in the fourth quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 6,896 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,168,000 after purchasing an additional 1,780 shares in the last quarter. Elevate Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter worth $1,939,000. Ethos Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 59.8% during the fourth quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC now owns 3,962 shares of the company's stock valued at $671,000 after buying an additional 1,483 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pensionfund Sabic raised its position in Hershey by 55.6% during the fourth quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 8,400 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,423,000 after buying an additional 3,000 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were 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 directly owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HSY traded down $2.15 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $168.16. The stock had a trading volume of 1,252,237 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,796,963. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $167.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $171.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $211.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.43, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.28.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 anticipate 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th were given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.26%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is 50.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on HSY. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $178.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded shares of Hershey from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $163.05.

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.