The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Short Interest Update

The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 6,360,000 shares, an increase of 7.4% from the September 15th total of 5,920,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,370,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.6 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total value of $286,245.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,531,729.24. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $644,912.46. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,531,729.24. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 14.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,341,721 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,372,965,000 after purchasing an additional 2,158,912 shares during the period. Confluence Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 297.9% during the 2nd quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 717,831 shares of the company’s stock valued at $131,959,000 after purchasing an additional 537,419 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in Hershey during the second quarter worth approximately $82,123,000. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Hershey by 3,404.3% in the first quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 256,447 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,879,000 after purchasing an additional 249,129 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its stake in Hershey by 1,194.0% in the second quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 249,347 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,837,000 after buying an additional 230,077 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Hershey from $188.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $179.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Jefferies Financial Group cut Hershey from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $184.00 to $163.00 in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on Hershey from $204.00 to $202.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $195.00.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of Hershey stock opened at $183.90 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $194.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $193.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.23, a P/E/G ratio of 5.44 and a beta of 0.37. Hershey has a fifty-two week low of $178.82 and a fifty-two week high of $211.92. 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 (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.01 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Hershey will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.98%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.31%.

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.