Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Increases Stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 11,665 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 416 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,175,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA raised its position in Hershey by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 754 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. raised its position in Hershey by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 5,258 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,052,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. raised its position in Hershey by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 5,839 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,089,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Hershey by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,428 shares of the company’s stock worth $272,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Hershey by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,138 shares of the company’s stock worth $212,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on HSY shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Hershey from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price target for the company from $191.00 to $183.00 in a report on Monday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $213.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, March 15th. Edward Jones reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hershey presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $213.06.

Hershey Stock Up 0.4 %

NYSE HSY traded up $0.81 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $198.97. 493,302 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,972,081. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.58 billion, a PE ratio of 19.63, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.33. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $178.82 and a fifty-two week high of $275.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $192.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $190.85.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $3.07 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.74 by $0.33. Hershey had a return on equity of 50.15% and a net margin of 18.13%. The firm had revenue of $3.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.96 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.75%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total value of $278,745.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 38,728 shares in the company, valued at $7,196,824.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.