Foster Group Inc. Has $453,000 Stock Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Foster Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 21.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,329 shares of the company’s stock after selling 624 shares during the period. Foster Group Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $453,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. Wealth Alliance lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 1,137 shares of the company’s stock worth $212,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. AJOVista LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter worth approximately $153,000. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 1,263.3% in the 4th quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 15,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,816,000 after purchasing an additional 13,997 shares during the period. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,332,000. Finally, Reliant Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,173,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Price Performance

NYSE HSY opened at $181.97 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $36.80 billion, a PE ratio of 18.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 0.37. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $178.82 and a 52 week high of $261.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $194.20 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $192.31.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.74 by $0.33. Hershey had a net margin of 18.13% and a return on equity of 50.15%. The firm had revenue of $3.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.96 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th were issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 16th. Hershey’s payout ratio is 54.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on HSY shares. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $213.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Argus dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. BNP Paribas downgraded shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $208.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $204.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $179.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $210.22.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total value of $278,745.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 38,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,196,824.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,500 shares of company stock valued at $882,405. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.