The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Short Interest Update

The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,710,000 shares, an increase of 21.1% from the June 30th total of 3,890,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,700,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.93, for a total transaction of $274,395.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 35,728 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,535,723.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders sold 4,500 shares of company stock worth $867,450. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 754 shares of the company’s stock valued at $141,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Hershey by 20.6% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 316 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC grew its stake in Hershey by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 3,661 shares of the company’s stock worth $683,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. grew its stake in Hershey by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 5,839 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,089,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mount Lucas Management LP grew its stake in Hershey by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Mount Lucas Management LP now owns 9,619 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,793,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hershey Stock Up 0.7 %

Hershey stock traded up $1.42 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $193.98. 1,718,074 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,851,236. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $190.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $192.58. The company has a market cap of $39.23 billion, a PE ratio of 19.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.81 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.64. Hershey has a fifty-two week low of $178.82 and a fifty-two week high of $235.80.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.33. Hershey had a return on equity of 50.15% and a net margin of 18.13%. The company had revenue of $3.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.96 EPS. Hershey’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Hershey will post 9.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.83%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on Hershey from $197.00 to $192.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Bank of America decreased their price target on Hershey from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Barclays decreased their price target on Hershey from $210.00 to $204.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on Hershey from $237.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $204.89.

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.