Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Price Target Raised to $195.00 at Morgan Stanley

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its price target hoisted by Morgan Stanley from $184.00 to $195.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Hershey from $154.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Argus raised shares of Hershey to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. Barclays set a $188.00 price target on Hershey in a report on Monday, November 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Hershey from $187.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $170.00 to $222.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $182.79.

Hershey Trading Up 0.9%

Hershey stock opened at $182.32 on Thursday. Hershey has a 52-week low of $140.13 and a 52-week high of $208.03. The company has a market cap of $36.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.25 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $182.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $178.11.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 32.08%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.34 earnings per share. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.900-6.000 EPS. Analysts predict that Hershey will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th will be given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 17th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.91%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Stacy Taffet bought 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $186.19 per share, for a total transaction of $37,238.00. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 9,371 shares in the company, valued at $1,744,786.49. This trade represents a 2.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.56, for a total value of $269,340.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 55,319 shares in the company, valued at $9,933,079.64. The trade was a 2.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 6,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,103,640 over the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HSY. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 18,840,577 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,126,594,000 after acquiring an additional 210,131 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Hershey by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,253,041 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,356,681,000 after purchasing an additional 128,982 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Hershey by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,116,739 shares of the company’s stock worth $849,123,000 after purchasing an additional 125,100 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Hershey by 2.8% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,567,373 shares of the company’s stock worth $755,305,000 after purchasing an additional 126,519 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 4.6% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,276,326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $543,712,000 after buying an additional 144,640 shares during the period. Institutional investors 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.