Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Stock Price Target Lowered at UBS Group

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its price target reduced by research analysts at UBS Group from $178.00 to $175.00 in a research note issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. UBS Group‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 5.52% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. BNP Paribas Exane cut their price target on Hershey from $195.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $194.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $173.00 target price on Hershey in a research note on Friday. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their target price on Hershey from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $212.00 to $206.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 27th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $194.14.

Hershey Stock Up 0.1%

NYSE:HSY opened at $165.85 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.76, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.08. Hershey has a 1-year low of $156.16 and a 1-year high of $239.48. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $169.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $189.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $2.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.53. The firm had revenue of $3.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.25 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 14.63% and a return on equity of 37.12%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.30 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Hershey will post 8.61 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the second quarter worth about $2,303,889,000. GQG Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey in the 2nd quarter worth about $485,436,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in Hershey in the 2nd quarter worth about $274,871,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Hershey by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,210,466 shares of the company’s stock worth $251,706,000 after buying an additional 19,772 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Hershey by 11.8% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,128,711 shares of the company’s stock worth $198,032,000 after buying an additional 118,825 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Company Profile

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a global confectionery and snack food manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Founded by Milton S. Hershey in 1894, the company began as a chocolate producer and has grown into one of the largest branded snack businesses in North America.

Hershey’s portfolio includes chocolate, non-chocolate confectionery, gum and mints, and salty snacks. Its brands include Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses, Kit Kat in the United States under license from Nestlé, Jolly Rancher, Twizzlers, Ice Breakers, SkinnyPop and Dot’s Pretzels.