Troy Asset Management Ltd Has $13.11 Million Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Troy Asset Management Ltd cut its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 24.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 77,401 shares of the company’s stock after selling 24,476 shares during the quarter. Troy Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Hershey were worth $13,108,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter worth about $80,978,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Hershey by 66.7% in the third 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. State Street Corp raised its position in Hershey by 5.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,348,127,000 after acquiring an additional 386,670 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Hershey by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,635,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $785,003,000 after acquiring an additional 247,675 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter worth $21,439,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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 value of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly 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 filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HSY has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $178.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $159.00 to $154.00 in a report on Friday, February 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $162.50.

Hershey Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $169.87 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $34.38 billion, a PE ratio of 15.58, a P/E/G 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 company’s fifty day moving average is $164.03 and its 200-day moving average is $174.04. The Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $211.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. Equities research analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th were given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.23%. Hershey’s payout ratio is 50.28%.

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.