Woodstock Corp Boosts Stock Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Woodstock Corp grew its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 34.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,896 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,780 shares during the quarter. Woodstock Corp's holdings in Hershey were worth $1,168,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new stake in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,337,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 66.7% in the third 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 in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Hershey by 61.9% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 120,159 shares of the company's stock worth $23,052,000 after acquiring an additional 45,936 shares during the period. Pensionfund Sabic lifted its holdings in Hershey by 55.6% during the fourth quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 8,400 shares of the company's stock worth $1,423,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares during the period. Finally, Clark & Stuart Inc purchased a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter worth $654,000. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HSY has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Hershey from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered their target price on Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $176.42.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HSY traded down $1.20 on Friday, hitting $152.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,937,259 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,299,500. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $150.31 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The company has a market capitalization of $30.92 billion, a PE ratio of 17.61, a PEG ratio of 4.31 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $171.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $184.39.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.59%. Hershey's payout ratio is presently 63.13%.

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.