Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Acquires New Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 9,991 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,692,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new position in Hershey in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,337,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Hershey by 66.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,571,000 after buying an additional 389,404 shares in the last quarter. Woodstock Corp lifted its stake in Hershey by 34.8% in the fourth quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 6,896 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,168,000 after buying an additional 1,780 shares in the last quarter. Elevate Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,939,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Hershey by 61.9% in the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 120,159 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,052,000 after buying an additional 45,936 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on HSY. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $164.15.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of HSY opened at $178.59 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.14 billion, a PE ratio of 16.38, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.37. The company’s 50-day moving average is $160.49 and its 200-day moving average is $177.58. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.64.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. Equities analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is 50.28%.

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.