Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Buys 25,780 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 787,377 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 25,780 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 0.39% of Hershey worth $144,743,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 218.2% in the second quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Hershey by 55.0% in the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Hershey in the first quarter valued at about $29,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly 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 this link. In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the completion of 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. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 3,538 shares of company stock worth $667,793. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on HSY. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup lowered Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $195.00 to $182.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Argus lowered Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price objective on Hershey from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $203.21.

Hershey Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of HSY stock opened at $195.43 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $178.82 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $196.30 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $194.07. The company has a market cap of $39.52 billion, a PE ratio of 19.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 0.37.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.01 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.80%. Hershey’s payout ratio is 54.31%.

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.