Callahan Advisors LLC Invests $300,000 in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Callahan Advisors LLC purchased a new position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,769 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $300,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund grew its position in shares of Hershey by 21.3% during the 4th quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 5,305 shares of the company’s stock valued at $898,000 after acquiring an additional 933 shares during the period. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. grew its holdings in Hershey by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 2,219 shares of the company’s stock valued at $376,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. increased its position in Hershey by 19.7% in the fourth quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 27,342 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,630,000 after buying an additional 4,494 shares during the last quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS bought a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at $226,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 464.9% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 435 shares of the company’s stock valued at $74,000 after buying an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Trading Up 3.3 %

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $163.08 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $161.78 and its 200-day moving average price is $178.81. The Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $140.13 and a 52-week high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.96. The company has a market cap of $33.00 billion, a PE ratio of 14.96, 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 expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on HSY. Barclays lowered their price objective on 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 lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Piper Sandler downgraded shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $153.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $164.15.

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.