The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Sold by State of Tennessee Department of Treasury

State of Tennessee Department of Treasury lessened its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 16.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 56,364 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,101 shares during the quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury's holdings in Hershey were worth $9,545,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in HSY. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake 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 valued at $186,571,000 after acquiring an additional 389,404 shares during the last quarter. Woodstock Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 34.8% in the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Elevate Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at $1,939,000. Ethos Financial Group LLC raised 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 worth $671,000 after buying an additional 1,483 shares during the period. Finally, Pensionfund Sabic boosted its holdings in Hershey by 55.6% in the fourth quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 8,400 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,423,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on HSY shares. 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 report on Wednesday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Hershey from $183.00 to $177.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Piper Sandler downgraded Hershey from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $178.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $163.35.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE:HSY traded down $0.81 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $163.18. 981,800 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,783,201. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.97, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.28. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $169.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $169.61. 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.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last announced 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 return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th were issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.28%.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the company'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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

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.