Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ Has $9.61 Million Position in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ raised its position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 9.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 51,396 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 4,465 shares during the quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ’s holdings in Hershey were worth $9,614,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Intrust Bank NA grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 15.8% in the third quarter. Intrust Bank NA now owns 5,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,052,000 after acquiring an additional 767 shares in the last quarter. Stevens Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at about $246,000. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the third quarter worth approximately $213,000. Convergence Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the third quarter valued at approximately $306,000. Finally, Northeast Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 71.6% in the third quarter. Northeast Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,918 shares of the company’s stock valued at $359,000 after buying an additional 800 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.66, for a total transaction of $329,490.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 50,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,162,901.54. This trade represents a 2.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold 4,500 shares of company stock valued at $910,260 in the last ninety days. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hershey Trading Up 2.1%

HSY opened at $226.38 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $45.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.16, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The company’s 50 day moving average is $198.97 and its 200-day moving average is $188.82. Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $150.04 and a 1-year high of $234.87.

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

Hershey Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be issued a $1.452 dividend. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. This is a boost from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.37. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 133.87%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HSY has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $185.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Hershey from $185.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $267.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $218.74.

Hershey Company 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.