DA Davidson Issues Positive Forecast for Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Stock Price

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its price target increased by DA Davidson from $185.00 to $207.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Marketbeat reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hershey in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and issued a $188.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday. Barclays set a $210.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Argus upgraded shares of Hershey to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Hershey from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $194.32.

Hershey Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of HSY opened at $197.84 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $187.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $184.90. Hershey has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $201.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.57 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In related news, CEO Kirk Tanner purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $185.46 per share, with a total value of $370,920.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 47,860 shares in the company, valued at $8,876,115.60. This trade represents a 4.36% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Stacy Taffet acquired 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $186.19 per share, for a total transaction of $37,238.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,371 shares in the company, valued at $1,744,786.49. The trade was a 2.18% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 6,000 shares of company stock worth $1,119,450. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in Hershey during the second quarter worth $224,000. Liberty One Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 32.4% in the 3rd quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC now owns 38,076 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,122,000 after acquiring an additional 9,309 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 58,078 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,695,000 after acquiring an additional 2,659 shares during the last quarter. CORDA Investment Management LLC. boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. CORDA Investment Management LLC. now owns 113,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,276,000 after purchasing an additional 7,064 shares during the period. Finally, OLD National Bancorp IN grew its holdings in Hershey by 895.4% during the 2nd quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 25,373 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,211,000 after purchasing an additional 22,824 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

About Hershey

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a leading North American chocolatier and snack manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The company develops, produces and markets a wide range of confectionery and snack products for retail, foodservice and international customers. Hershey’s business spans manufacturing, branded product marketing, packaging and distribution across grocery, convenience, mass merchant and e-commerce channels.

Hershey’s product portfolio centers on chocolate and sugar confectionery, including core brands such as Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses and Twizzlers, alongside non-chocolate snacks and confectionery brands.