State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Trims Stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D cut its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 34.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 54,445 shares of the company’s stock after selling 28,797 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Hershey were worth $10,009,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey by 218.2% in the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in Hershey in the first quarter worth about $29,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on HSY shares. Argus cut Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $195.00 to $182.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $179.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on Hershey from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $203.21.

Hershey Price Performance

NYSE HSY opened at $200.83 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $40.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.90, a PEG ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 0.37. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $178.82 and a 12 month high of $213.85. The company’s 50 day moving average is $195.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $193.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.17). The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.01 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.73%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.31%.

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.