The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Purchased by Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co

Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co raised its position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 2.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,697 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,093,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Hershey by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,348,127,000 after buying an additional 386,670 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Hershey by 2.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,387,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $841,476,000 after purchasing an additional 109,336 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Hershey by 1.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,753,751 shares of the company’s stock valued at $717,606,000 after purchasing an additional 35,688 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,571,000 after buying an additional 389,404 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Hershey by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 964,748 shares of the company’s stock valued at $185,027,000 after buying an additional 29,507 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $163.00 to $161.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays decreased their target price on Hershey from $202.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Hershey from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $185.17.

Hershey Stock Up 3.9 %

HSY stock opened at $183.95 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $180.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $188.54. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $168.16 and a 52 week high of $211.92. The company has a market cap of $37.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.19, a P/E/G ratio of 4.24 and a beta of 0.37.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 63.13%.

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.