Retirement Guys Formula LLC Has $689,000 Stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Retirement Guys Formula LLC increased its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 9.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,070 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 338 shares during the period. Retirement Guys Formula LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $689,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Hershey during the third quarter worth $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Hershey by 248.0% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its holdings in Hershey by 61.7% during the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Hershey during the third quarter worth $46,000. Finally, City State Bank increased its holdings in Hershey by 210.0% during the fourth quarter. City State Bank now owns 310 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HSY has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, December 12th. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $165.05.

Hershey Stock Performance

Hershey stock opened at $158.34 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $163.92 and a 200-day moving average of $180.11. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $140.13 and a 1 year 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 0.54. The company has a market capitalization of $32.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.53, a P/E/G ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.37.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders 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 3.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the completion of 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.34% 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.