Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Has $1.29 Million Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. decreased its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 12.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,738 shares of the company’s stock after selling 992 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,292,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of HSY. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. grew 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 buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 0.8% in the third quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 7,355 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,411,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its position in Hershey by 3.7% during the second quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 1,673 shares of the company’s stock worth $308,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in Hershey by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,631 shares of the company’s stock valued at $484,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rehmann Capital Advisory Group boosted its holdings in Hershey by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 1,165 shares of the company’s stock valued at $227,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of Hershey stock opened at $181.26 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.14, a P/E/G ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 0.37. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $192.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $192.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $178.82 and a 1-year high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.01 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.02%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is 60.89%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $204.00 to $202.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Hershey from $188.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Hershey from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $184.00 to $163.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their target price on Hershey from $179.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $191.55.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $644,912.46. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.