Quantbot Technologies LP Sells 19,204 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Quantbot Technologies LP trimmed its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 66.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 9,751 shares of the company’s stock after selling 19,204 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,651,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 248.0% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 61.7% in the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, City State Bank increased its holdings in Hershey by 210.0% during the 4th quarter. City State Bank now owns 310 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of HSY stock opened at $168.30 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.44, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.96. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $162.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $174.59. The Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.26%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total transaction of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $396,936. The trade was a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on HSY. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $159.00 to $154.00 in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.67.

About Hershey

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.