Hershey (NYSE:HSY) PT Lowered to $202.00 at Barclays

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its price target lowered by Barclays from $204.00 to $202.00 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Hershey in a research report on Monday, August 12th. They issued a sell rating and a $185.00 target price for the company. Argus downgraded Hershey from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Citigroup lowered Hershey from a neutral rating to a sell rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $195.00 to $182.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $198.63.

Hershey Trading Up 1.5 %

NYSE HSY opened at $193.32 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $39.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.67 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Hershey has a 12 month low of $178.82 and a 12 month high of $211.92. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $196.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $194.04.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.01 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Hershey will post 9.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s payout ratio is 54.31%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total value of $286,245.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,531,729.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total transaction of $286,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at $6,531,729.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $644,912.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Hershey by 14.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,341,721 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,372,965,000 after buying an additional 2,158,912 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 6.5% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,487,565 shares of the company’s stock worth $289,327,000 after buying an additional 90,329 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 3.4% in the second 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. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 23.2% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 783,128 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,962,000 after buying an additional 147,215 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vontobel Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Hershey by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Vontobel Asset Management Inc. now owns 781,967 shares of the company’s stock valued at $151,715,000 after buying an additional 112,304 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.