Hershey Company (The) $HSY Shares Acquired by Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 158,288 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,085 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $29,608,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Choreo LLC increased its position in Hershey by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 1,708 shares of the company’s stock worth $283,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 12.3% in the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 567 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,000 after buying an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators grew its holdings in Hershey by 8.4% during the third quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 798 shares of the company’s stock worth $149,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC raised its position in Hershey by 46.3% in the second quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 199 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Optivise Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Hershey by 5.1% in the second quarter. Optivise Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the company’s stock valued at $222,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $190.30 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $187.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $184.21. Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $140.13 and a 12-month high of $201.86. The company has a market capitalization of $38.59 billion, a PE ratio of 28.45 and a beta of 0.18.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 32.08% and a net margin of 11.84%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.34 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Hershey in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. They set a “hold” rating and a $181.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Hershey from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed a “positive” rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, October 31st. Barclays set a $210.00 price target on Hershey in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $182.00 price target on Hershey and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $191.79.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.67, for a total value of $298,005.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 52,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,394,215.73. The trade was a 2.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Stacy Taffet acquired 200 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was bought at an average price of $186.19 per share, for a total transaction of $37,238.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,744,786.49. This represents a 2.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 6,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,119,450. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

About Hershey

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a leading North American chocolatier and snack manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The company develops, produces and markets a wide range of confectionery and snack products for retail, foodservice and international customers. Hershey’s business spans manufacturing, branded product marketing, packaging and distribution across grocery, convenience, mass merchant and e-commerce channels.

Hershey’s product portfolio centers on chocolate and sugar confectionery, including core brands such as Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses and Twizzlers, alongside non-chocolate snacks and confectionery brands.