Prosperity Consulting Group LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Prosperity Consulting Group LLC lowered its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 30.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,771 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,998 shares during the period. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC's holdings in Hershey were worth $1,147,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company's stock worth $186,571,000 after acquiring an additional 389,404 shares in the last quarter. Woodstock Corp raised its holdings in Hershey by 34.8% during the fourth quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 6,896 shares of the company's stock worth $1,168,000 after purchasing an additional 1,780 shares in the last quarter. Elevate Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at $1,939,000. Ethos Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey by 59.8% in the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Pensionfund Sabic raised its stake in Hershey by 55.6% during the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 8,400 shares of the company's stock worth $1,423,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on HSY. UBS Group raised their price objective on Hershey from $159.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. DA Davidson decreased their price objective on Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $163.35.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $163.18 on Friday. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $169.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $169.61. The company has a market cap of $33.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.97, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.28. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th were given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. Hershey's payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

Insider Activity

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

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.

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