Pensionfund Sabic Raises Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Pensionfund Sabic boosted its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 55.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,400 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares during the period. Pensionfund Sabic’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,423,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the third quarter valued at $25,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at about $46,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 3rd quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, Quarry LP grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 123.9% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 300 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on HSY. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. UBS Group cut Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $226.00 to $209.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Hershey from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “sell” rating and a $165.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Six research 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, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $184.61.

Hershey Stock Down 1.0 %

NYSE:HSY traded down $1.68 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $167.35. The company had a trading volume of 234,638 shares, compared to its average volume of 629,943. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $166.69 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.28, a PEG ratio of 4.38 and a beta of 0.38. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $175.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $186.16.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.27%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s payout ratio is 63.13%.

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.