Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Earns “Sector Perform” Rating from Royal Bank of Canada

Hershey (NYSE:HSY)‘s stock had its “sector perform” rating reissued by equities researchers at Royal Bank of Canada in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $178.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 22.95% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Piper Sandler cut Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective 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 dropped their target price on Hershey from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $169.79.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE HSY opened at $144.78 on Monday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $166.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $181.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.54. Hershey has a 1 year low of $143.95 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.30 billion, a PE ratio of 16.68, a P/E/G ratio of 4.30 and a beta of 0.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of HSY. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Hershey by 30,461.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 573,643 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,100,130,000 after purchasing an additional 571,766 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,571,000 after buying an additional 389,404 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 5.8% in the 3rd 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 last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 31.3% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 586,565 shares of the company’s stock worth $112,491,000 after acquiring an additional 139,831 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Hershey by 2.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,387,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $841,476,000 after acquiring an additional 109,336 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.