The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Sold by Legal & General Group Plc

Legal & General Group Plc reduced its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 23.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,068,040 shares of the company's stock after selling 325,681 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned 0.53% of Hershey worth $180,873,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $80,978,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Hershey by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company's stock valued at $186,571,000 after acquiring an additional 389,404 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Hershey by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,635,390 shares of the company's stock valued at $785,003,000 after acquiring an additional 247,675 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in Hershey during the fourth quarter worth about $21,439,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth about $18,273,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HSY has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Barclays cut their price objective on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Hershey in a report on Monday, March 24th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $183.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen cut their price target on Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, DA Davidson decreased their price objective on Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $163.05.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were 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 approximately $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of HSY stock traded down $2.89 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $167.41. The stock had a trading volume of 323,277 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,951,866. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.89 billion, a PE ratio of 15.36, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.28. The stock's 50 day moving average is $167.88 and its 200 day moving average is $171.00. The Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $211.92.

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

Hershey Dividend Announcement

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