Insider Selling: The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) SVP Sells $98,000.00 in Stock

The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY – Get Rating) SVP Jason Reiman sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.00, for a total transaction of $98,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 16,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,148,830. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Jason Reiman also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, March 9th, Jason Reiman sold 150 shares of Hershey stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.35, for a total transaction of $36,052.50.
• On Monday, February 27th, Jason Reiman sold 2,825 shares of Hershey stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.52, for a total transaction of $676,644.00.
• On Friday, February 24th, Jason Reiman sold 555 shares of Hershey stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.92, for a total transaction of $132,600.60.
• On Thursday, February 9th, Jason Reiman sold 150 shares of Hershey stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.83, for a total transaction of $35,224.50.

Hershey Trading Down 0.8 %

HSY opened at $243.15 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $201.42 and a twelve month high of $247.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The company has a fifty day moving average of $232.96 and a 200-day moving average of $230.21. The stock has a market cap of $49.61 billion, a PE ratio of 30.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.31.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 2nd. The company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.25. Hershey had a net margin of 15.79% and a return on equity of 57.76%. The company had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.69 earnings per share. Hershey’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.39 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 17th were given a dividend of $1.036 per share. This represents a $4.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Credit Suisse Group increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 3rd. UBS Group raised shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $244.00 to $269.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $236.00 to $246.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 6th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $245.23.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Dupont Capital Management Corp grew its holdings in Hershey by 26.3% in the third quarter. Dupont Capital Management Corp now owns 5,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,314,000 after purchasing an additional 1,241 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D grew its holdings in Hershey by 1.2% in the third quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 83,868 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,490,000 after purchasing an additional 997 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its holdings in Hershey by 0.8% in the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 76,681 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,906,000 after purchasing an additional 614 shares during the period. Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Hershey by 6.1% in the third quarter. Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,310 shares of the company’s stock worth $289,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Finally, Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey in the third quarter worth $202,000. 54.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Company Profile

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The Hershey Co engages in the manufacture and marketing of chocolate, sweets, mints and confectionery products. The firm operates through the following geographical segments: North America and International and Other. The North America is responsible for the traditional chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery market position of the company, as well as its grocery and snacks market positions, in the United States and Canada.