ST Germain D J Co. Inc. Has $44,000 Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 61.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 262 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. ST Germain D J Co. Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $44,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position 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 raised its holdings 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 valued at $1,411,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 2.3% in the second quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,631 shares of the company’s stock worth $484,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its holdings in Hershey by 10.4% during the second quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 647 shares of the company’s stock worth $119,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its position in Hershey by 1.1% in the third quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 5,646 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,083,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on HSY. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $150.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Hershey from $165.00 to $159.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Hershey in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “sell” rating and a $165.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $182.21.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $158.40 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $174.11 and its 200-day moving average is $185.41. The firm has a market cap of $32.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.38 and a beta of 0.38. The Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $156.10 and a 1-year high of $211.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.