American Trust Acquires 6,337 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

American Trust increased its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 34.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 24,651 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,337 shares during the quarter. American Trust’s holdings in Hershey were worth $4,795,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Hershey by 14.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,341,721 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,372,965,000 after purchasing an additional 2,158,912 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at about $349,448,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Hershey by 18,495.8% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 295,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,125,000 after purchasing an additional 294,083 shares in the last quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Hershey by 3,404.3% during the 1st quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 256,447 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,879,000 after purchasing an additional 249,129 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Hershey by 98.4% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 419,947 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,680,000 after purchasing an additional 208,293 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of HSY traded down $0.54 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $199.08. The stock had a trading volume of 2,235,769 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,718,185. The firm has a market cap of $40.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.73, a PEG 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 $233.21. The business has a fifty day moving average of $189.85 and a 200 day moving average of $192.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.01 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.59 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.75%. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 54.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total transaction of $286,245.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at $6,531,729.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 4,500 shares of company stock worth $867,450 over the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on HSY. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $237.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Argus reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Edward Jones reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, April 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $204.50.

Hershey 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.