Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Now Covered by Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Hershey (NYSE:HSY) in a research report sent to investors on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued an equal weight rating and a $183.00 price target on the stock.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on HSY. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Bernstein Bank dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $164.67.

Hershey Stock Performance

Hershey stock opened at $168.30 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $162.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $174.59. The stock has a market cap of $34.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.64. Hershey has a 1-year low of $140.13 and a 1-year high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. On average, analysts expect that Hershey will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th were issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.28%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in Hershey by 31.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,460,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,110,126,000 after acquiring an additional 2,980,997 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at about $80,978,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 38.6% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,628,047 shares of the company’s stock valued at $275,710,000 after purchasing an additional 453,428 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Hershey by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,571,000 after buying an additional 389,404 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its position in Hershey by 5.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,348,127,000 after buying an additional 386,670 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Hershey

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.