Tortoise Investment Management LLC Has $77,000 Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Tortoise Investment Management LLC cut its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 13.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 454 shares of the company’s stock after selling 71 shares during the quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $77,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Avestar Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Hershey by 6.0% during the third quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 1,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Parthenon LLC raised its position in shares of Hershey by 0.3% during the third quarter. Parthenon LLC now owns 24,240 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,649,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Hershey by 1.0% during the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,151 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,563,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in shares of Hershey by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 5,438 shares of the company’s stock worth $921,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Finally, Waterfront Wealth Inc. raised its position in shares of Hershey by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 5,744 shares of the company’s stock worth $973,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Mizuho lowered their price target on Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Barclays lowered their price target on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $178.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $164.15.

Hershey Stock Up 0.6 %

HSY stock opened at $186.19 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.96. The company has a market capitalization of $37.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.08, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $211.92. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $161.83 and a 200-day moving average of $176.33.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.94%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.