Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Sets New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $178.71 and last traded at $178.81, with a volume of 278910 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $180.02.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “sell” rating and a $165.00 price target on the stock. Barclays dropped their price target on Hershey from $204.00 to $202.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Hershey from $163.00 to $161.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Hershey from $188.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $191.61.

Hershey Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $36.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 0.37. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $191.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $192.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.01 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 9.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at $644,912.46. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hershey

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. LPL Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 10.0% in the second quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 320,680 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,951,000 after purchasing an additional 29,246 shares during the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Hershey by 179.4% during the first quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 6,958 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,353,000 after buying an additional 4,468 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Hershey by 119.8% during the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 91,766 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,633,000 after buying an additional 50,014 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in Hershey by 239.2% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 22,035 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,286,000 after buying an additional 15,538 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in Hershey by 2.2% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 54,540 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,608,000 after buying an additional 1,168 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Company 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.