Dakota Wealth Management Trims Stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Dakota Wealth Management reduced its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 32,010 shares of the company’s stock after selling 184 shares during the quarter. Dakota Wealth Management’s holdings in Hershey were worth $5,421,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Hershey by 5.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,348,127,000 after acquiring an additional 386,670 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Hershey by 2.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,387,715 shares of the company’s stock worth $841,476,000 after acquiring an additional 109,336 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Hershey by 1.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,753,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $717,606,000 after acquiring an additional 35,688 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Hershey by 66.7% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,571,000 after acquiring an additional 389,404 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Hershey by 3.2% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 964,748 shares of the company’s stock worth $185,027,000 after acquiring an additional 29,507 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of HSY opened at $151.18 on Thursday. The Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $150.31 and a twelve month high of $211.92. The company has a 50 day moving average of $170.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $183.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The company has a market cap of $30.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 0.38.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.62%. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 63.13%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on HSY shares. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $183.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $175.00.

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.