National Bank of Canada FI Has $13.42 Million Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

National Bank of Canada FI grew its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 19.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 73,587 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,130 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI’s holdings in Hershey were worth $13,421,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its holdings in 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 during the period. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Hershey in the first quarter worth $29,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Hershey in the second quarter worth $29,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Hershey in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey in the first quarter worth $35,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 21st. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $204.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $202.79.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of HSY opened at $199.80 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $193.40 and a 200-day moving average of $193.35. The Hershey Company has a one year low of $178.82 and a one year high of $213.85. The company has a market cap of $40.41 billion, a PE ratio of 19.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.60 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.48.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its earnings results 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). The company had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.01 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.74%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were 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 approximately $644,912.46. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $6,531,729.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of Hershey 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $644,912.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,538 shares of company stock worth $667,793 in the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.