The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Bought by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 972,836 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 389,404 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.48% of Hershey worth $186,571,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the third quarter worth $1,337,000. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Hershey by 61.9% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 120,159 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,052,000 after acquiring an additional 45,936 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC lifted its stake in Hershey by 10.0% in the 2nd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 320,680 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,951,000 after purchasing an additional 29,246 shares in the last quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 53.7% during the 3rd quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 44,339 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,503,000 after purchasing an additional 15,497 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MAI Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 11.6% in the third quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 123,160 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,620,000 after purchasing an additional 12,832 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on HSY shares. Mizuho dropped their target price on Hershey from $200.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $163.00 to $161.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $183.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein cut Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $185.17.

Hershey Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of HSY stock opened at $168.94 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.24 and a beta of 0.37. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $168.16 and a fifty-two week high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.85. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $178.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $187.82.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 63.13%.

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.