Kathmere Capital Management LLC Takes $292,000 Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Kathmere Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 1,588 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $292,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 218.2% in the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 55.0% in the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of HSY stock opened at $193.36 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.86. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $196.42 and its 200-day moving average is $193.99. The stock has a market cap of $39.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.16, a PEG ratio of 5.67 and a beta of 0.37. The Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $178.82 and a 52-week high of $211.92.

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

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.83%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.31%.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was 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 approximately $6,531,729.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $644,912.46. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at $6,531,729.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on HSY shares. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $204.00 to $202.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $237.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Hershey in a research note on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $185.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $198.63.

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.