RFG Advisory LLC Acquires New Holdings in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

RFG Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 2,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $480,000.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV acquired a new stake in Hershey in the third quarter valued at $1,873,000. Appleton Partners Inc. MA increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.2% in the third quarter. Appleton Partners Inc. MA now owns 23,256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,350,000 after buying an additional 287 shares during the period. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC raised its position in shares of Hershey by 0.6% during the third quarter. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC now owns 21,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,096,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 38.6% in the third quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,033 shares of the company’s stock worth $380,000 after acquiring an additional 566 shares during the period. Finally, SouthState Bank Corp boosted its holdings in Hershey by 775.0% in the third quarter. SouthState Bank Corp now owns 350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In related news, CEO Kirk Tanner acquired 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $185.46 per share, for a total transaction of $370,920.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 47,860 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,876,115.60. The trade was a 4.36% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.67, for a total transaction of $298,005.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 52,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,394,215.73. The trade was a 2.79% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 6,000 shares of company stock worth $1,119,450. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of Hershey stock opened at $222.06 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $194.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $187.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.17, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.72. Hershey Company has a one year low of $150.04 and a one year high of $234.87.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.31. Hershey had a return on equity of 27.90% and a net margin of 7.55%.The firm had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.69 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.520 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be issued a $1.452 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. This is a boost from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.37. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 133.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on HSY. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Hershey from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $185.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Stephens upped their price target on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Hershey from $185.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Hershey from $182.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $220.30.

Hershey Profile

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.