Wells Fargo & Company Trims Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Target Price to $200.00

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its target price cut by Wells Fargo & Company from $205.00 to $200.00 in a research note released on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $213.00 to $199.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley lowered Hershey from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating and decreased their target price for the company from $191.00 to $183.00 in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Finally, BNP Paribas lowered Hershey from an outperform rating to a neutral rating and set a $208.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $223.33.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $185.02 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The company has a market capitalization of $37.73 billion, a PE ratio of 20.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.34. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $192.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $190.97. Hershey has a twelve month low of $178.82 and a twelve month high of $276.88.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.07. Hershey had a return on equity of 51.79% and a net margin of 16.67%. The firm had revenue of $2.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.72 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.02 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Hershey will post 9.6 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This is a positive change from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.96%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.97, for a total transaction of $283,455.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 29,816 shares in the company, valued at $5,634,329.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total transaction of $89,938.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $369,681.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.97, for a total value of $283,455.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 29,816 shares in the company, valued at $5,634,329.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 3,453 shares of company stock valued at $670,244. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hershey

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. purchased a new position in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Main Street Group LTD purchased a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, First Financial Corp IN purchased a new position in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

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.