M&T Bank Corp Boosts Stock Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

M&T Bank Corp raised its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 34,468 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,195 shares during the quarter. M&T Bank Corp’s holdings in Hershey were worth $6,610,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp raised its stake in Hershey by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,348,127,000 after acquiring an additional 386,670 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Hershey by 2.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,387,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $841,476,000 after purchasing an additional 109,336 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,753,751 shares of the company’s stock valued at $717,606,000 after buying an additional 35,688 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Hershey by 66.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,571,000 after buying an additional 389,404 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in Hershey by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 964,748 shares of the company’s stock valued at $185,027,000 after buying an additional 29,507 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Hershey from $163.00 to $161.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Mizuho reduced their target price on Hershey from $200.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $188.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “sell” rating and a $165.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased 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. Six analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $185.17.

Hershey Trading Up 0.8 %

HSY stock opened at $170.26 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $34.45 billion, a PE ratio of 19.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.24 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.85. The Hershey Company has a one year low of $168.16 and a one year high of $211.92. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $178.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $187.55.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.13%.

About Hershey

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.