UBS Group Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Stock Price

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by analysts at UBS Group from $189.00 to $163.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "neutral" rating on the stock. UBS Group's target price suggests a potential upside of 5.76% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on HSY. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $202.00 to $180.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Hershey from $160.00 to $150.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Hershey from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $183.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $177.47.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of Hershey stock traded up $2.38 during trading on Thursday, hitting $154.13. The stock had a trading volume of 1,633,936 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,019,978. 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 firm has a market cap of $31.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.76, a PEG ratio of 4.31 and a beta of 0.38. The business has a fifty day moving average of $173.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $185.04. Hershey has a fifty-two week low of $150.31 and a fifty-two week high of $211.92.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its holdings in Hershey by 10.4% during the second quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 647 shares of the company's stock valued at $119,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the second quarter worth $82,123,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 787,377 shares of the company's stock worth $144,743,000 after buying an additional 25,780 shares during the period. Wealth Alliance grew its stake in Hershey by 163.6% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 2,747 shares of the company's stock valued at $505,000 after buying an additional 1,705 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC raised its holdings in Hershey by 11.6% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 15,305 shares of the company's stock worth $2,777,000 after acquiring an additional 1,586 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company's stock.

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.

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