The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Bought by CIBC Asset Management Inc

CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 1.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 67,934 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 710 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc’s holdings in Hershey were worth $11,502,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 23.3% during the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 333 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 4,130 shares of the company’s stock worth $792,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Avestar Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 1,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $225,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Wealth Management now owns 6,007 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,152,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parthenon LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Parthenon LLC now owns 24,240 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,649,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Bernstein Bank cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $180.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $164.15.

Hershey Price Performance

Hershey stock opened at $163.08 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $33.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $161.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $178.81. The Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $140.13 and a 12-month high of $211.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. Equities analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th will be given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.28%.

Hershey 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.