Jacobi Capital Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Jacobi Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 27.4% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 6,104 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,311 shares during the quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,034,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust raised its stake in Hershey by 248.0% during the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its stake in Hershey by 61.7% during the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Hershey during the 3rd quarter worth $46,000. Finally, City State Bank raised its stake in Hershey by 210.0% during the 4th quarter. City State Bank now owns 310 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Stock Up 0.2 %

HSY stock opened at $172.68 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $211.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company has a market cap of $34.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.84, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.37. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $160.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $177.17.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. On average, research analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.17%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.28%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on HSY shares. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $178.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup upgraded shares of Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $159.00 to $154.00 in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.15.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at approximately $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey 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.