The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Short Interest Down 6.7% in December

The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 6,950,000 shares, a decline of 6.7% from the December 15th total of 7,450,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,090,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.3 days.

Institutional Trading of Hershey

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in Hershey by 248.0% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its position in Hershey by 61.7% in the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new position in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at $48,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Hershey from $168.00 to $153.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $176.42.

Hershey Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:HSY traded down $1.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $152.82. 1,937,259 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,299,500. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $171.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $184.39. Hershey has a 12-month low of $150.31 and a 12-month high of $211.92. The stock has a market cap of $30.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.61, a P/E/G ratio of 4.31 and a beta of 0.38. 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 paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.59%. Hershey’s payout ratio is 63.13%.

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.