Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Given New $204.00 Price Target at Barclays

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its price objective lowered by Barclays from $210.00 to $204.00 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $179.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Argus lowered their target price on shares of Hershey from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Edward Jones reiterated a hold rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, BNP Paribas lowered shares of Hershey from an outperform rating to a neutral rating and set a $208.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $210.22.

Hershey Trading Down 0.2 %

HSY opened at $182.72 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $194.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $192.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.18 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.64. Hershey has a 1-year low of $178.82 and a 1-year high of $262.30.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $3.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 18.13% and a return on equity of 50.15%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.96 EPS. Analysts expect that Hershey will post 9.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th were issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.00%. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 54.31%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total transaction of $278,745.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 38,728 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,196,824.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In the last three months, insiders have sold 4,500 shares of company stock worth $882,405. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. SRN Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. SRN Advisors LLC now owns 4,736 shares of the company’s stock worth $921,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. American Trust grew its holdings in Hershey by 34.6% during the first quarter. American Trust now owns 24,651 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,795,000 after purchasing an additional 6,337 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Hershey by 884.1% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,037 shares of the company’s stock valued at $395,000 after purchasing an additional 1,830 shares during the period. Clear Rock Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 6.1% in the first quarter. Clear Rock Advisors LLC now owns 7,588 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,476,000 after acquiring an additional 437 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Peninsula Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey in the first quarter valued at about $214,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.