Creative Planning Raises Stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Creative Planning boosted its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 13.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 63,030 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,382 shares during the period. Creative Planning’s holdings in Hershey were worth $11,587,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Annandale Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 2nd quarter valued at about $717,000. Kathmere Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the second quarter valued at approximately $292,000. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 16.9% during the second quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 5,309 shares of the company’s stock valued at $976,000 after purchasing an additional 769 shares during the period. Scientech Research LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 60.6% in the second quarter. Scientech Research LLC now owns 7,077 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,301,000 after purchasing an additional 2,671 shares during the period. Finally, MBB Public Markets I LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,955,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Performance

HSY stock opened at $191.89 on Wednesday. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $178.82 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.02, a PEG ratio of 5.67 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.86. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $196.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $193.94.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.01 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.49 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.86%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.31%.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on HSY. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Hershey in a report on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $185.00 price target for the company. Barclays cut their target price on Hershey from $204.00 to $202.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Argus downgraded shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $198.63.

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.