Morgan Stanley Cuts Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Price Target to $177.00

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its price objective decreased by Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $177.00 in a research note released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on HSY. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $178.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler downgraded shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on Hershey from $173.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $163.35.

Hershey Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $166.41 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.27, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.28. Hershey 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 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $168.78 and its 200-day moving average price is $170.42.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Hershey will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Montag & Caldwell LLC purchased a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust raised its position in Hershey by 248.0% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

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.