Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Given New $165.00 Price Target at Citigroup

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its price objective decreased by Citigroup from $173.00 to $165.00 in a report issued on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. Citigroup currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on HSY. UBS Group cut their price objective on Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Bernstein Bank lowered their price objective on Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Hershey in a report on Monday, March 24th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $183.00 target price on the stock. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. 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 an average target price of $163.35.

Hershey Price Performance

HSY opened at $166.41 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $168.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $170.76. Hershey has a 12-month low of $140.13 and a 12-month high of $211.92. The firm has a market cap of $33.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.27, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Hershey will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th were paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Hershey by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,571,000 after acquiring an additional 389,404 shares during the last quarter. Woodstock Corp raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 34.8% during the fourth quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 6,896 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,168,000 after purchasing an additional 1,780 shares during the last quarter. Elevate Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $1,939,000. Ethos Financial Group LLC grew its position in Hershey by 59.8% in the 4th quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC now owns 3,962 shares of the company’s stock valued at $671,000 after buying an additional 1,483 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pensionfund Sabic increased its stake in Hershey by 55.6% in the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 8,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,423,000 after buying an additional 3,000 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.