Truist Financial Corp Trims Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Truist Financial Corp trimmed its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 0.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,122,635 shares of the company’s stock after selling 325 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp owned about 0.56% of Hershey worth $206,374,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 218.2% in the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in Hershey in the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in Hershey by 55.0% during 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 during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Hershey during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,531,729.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $644,912.46. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,531,729.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on HSY. Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $179.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Finally, Citigroup lowered shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their target price for the company from $195.00 to $182.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $198.63.

Hershey Price Performance

NYSE:HSY opened at $191.75 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $38.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.67 and a beta of 0.37. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $196.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $193.95. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $178.82 and a 12 month high of $211.92. 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 posted its quarterly 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). Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.01 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was 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 (DPR) is presently 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.