Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton Sells 94 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton reduced its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 19.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 378 shares of the company’s stock after selling 94 shares during the period. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton’s holdings in Hershey were worth $69,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 20.6% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 316 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC grew its position in Hershey by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 3,661 shares of the company’s stock worth $683,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. increased its stake in Hershey by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 5,839 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,089,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the period. Mount Lucas Management LP raised its holdings in Hershey by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Mount Lucas Management LP now owns 9,619 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,793,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 13.3% in the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 486 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Trading Up 0.3 %

HSY opened at $191.63 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $191.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $193.19. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $178.82 and a fifty-two week high of $219.92. The company has a market cap of $38.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.96 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.64.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.01 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 9.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th will be given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.86%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is 54.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total value of $286,245.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at $6,531,729.24. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total value of $286,245.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at $6,531,729.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at $644,912.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,538 shares of company stock valued at $667,793 in the last 90 days. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup cut Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $195.00 to $182.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Argus lowered shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Hershey in a report on Monday, August 12th. They set a “sell” rating and a $185.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target 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, June 18th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $202.79.

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.