The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Short Interest Update

The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 6,360,000 shares, a growth of 7.4% from the September 15th total of 5,920,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,370,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.6 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total transaction of $286,245.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,531,729.24. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $644,912.46. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total transaction of $286,245.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,531,729.24. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hershey

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Integrated Advisors Network LLC raised its position in Hershey by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 1,794 shares of the company’s stock valued at $334,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Hershey by 13.5% in the 4th quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 2,257 shares of the company’s stock worth $421,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter worth $816,000. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter worth $564,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Price Performance

HSY traded up $0.48 on Wednesday, hitting $184.81. 1,177,730 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,691,059. The firm has a market cap of $37.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.36, a P/E/G ratio of 5.44 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $194.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $193.39. Hershey has a one year low of $178.82 and a one year high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. Hershey’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.01 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Hershey will post 9.47 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Hershey from $188.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Hershey in a report on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $185.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group cut Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $226.00 to $209.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein cut Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $195.00.

Hershey Company 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.