W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co Has $7.91 Million Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co raised its holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 41,238 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 768 shares during the period. W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co’s holdings in Hershey were worth $7,909,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Hershey by 55.0% in the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY grew its position in shares of Hershey by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 7,355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,411,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc. grew its position in shares of Hershey by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 1,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $308,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,631 shares of the company’s stock valued at $484,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. Finally, Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Hershey by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. now owns 4,067 shares of the company’s stock valued at $748,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of HSY stock opened at $169.99 on Tuesday. The Hershey Company has a one year low of $169.10 and a one year high of $211.92. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $186.65 and a 200-day moving average of $191.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The company has a market cap of $34.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.58, a P/E/G ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.38.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.22%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on HSY. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded shares of Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $230.00 to $205.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $163.00 to $161.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $191.00 to $199.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Hershey in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “sell” rating and a $165.00 price objective for the company. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $189.33.

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.