The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Plans Quarterly Dividend of $1.37

The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, November 7th,RTT News reports. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of 1.37 per share on Monday, December 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.21%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th.

Hershey has increased its dividend payment by an average of 12.2% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 15 years. Hershey has a dividend payout ratio of 66.0% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Hershey to earn $8.43 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $5.48 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 65.0%.

Hershey Trading Down 4.5 %

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $170.92 on Friday. Hershey has a 52 week low of $170.58 and a 52 week high of $211.92. The company’s 50 day moving average is $187.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $191.79. The company has a market cap of $34.58 billion, a PE ratio of 19.69, a P/E/G ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HSY has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Hershey from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on Hershey from $205.00 to $183.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “sell” rating and a $165.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Argus downgraded shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $189.33.

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.