Signaturefd LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Signaturefd LLC lowered its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 23.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,579 shares of the company’s stock after selling 772 shares during the quarter. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $474,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in Hershey by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 25,389 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,734,000 after buying an additional 2,041 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 121,193 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,595,000 after acquiring an additional 1,921 shares in the last quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 23,455 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,373,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Hershey by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 5,839 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,089,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its holdings in Hershey by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 5,125 shares of the company’s stock worth $956,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $644,912.46. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $644,912.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total value of $286,245.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,531,729.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,538 shares of company stock worth $667,793. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $193.06 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $192.13 and a 200 day moving average of $193.17. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market cap of $39.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.13, a P/E/G ratio of 4.96 and a beta of 0.36. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $178.82 and a 12 month high of $219.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.01 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 9.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.84%. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 54.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on HSY shares. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $179.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Argus downgraded shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Citigroup cut shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $195.00 to $182.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Hershey in a research note on Monday, August 12th. They set a “sell” rating and a $185.00 price target for the company. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price objective on Hershey from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $202.79.

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.