Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Increases Stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 86,625 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 4,596 shares during the quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $14,879,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its position in Hershey by 23.3% during the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 333 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 4,130 shares of the company’s stock worth $792,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 1,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Massachusetts Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Wealth Management now owns 6,007 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,152,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Finally, Parthenon LLC grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Parthenon LLC now owns 24,240 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,649,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at approximately $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of HSY stock opened at $157.99 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $31.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.49, a PEG ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.37. The Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $140.13 and a 1-year high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $162.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $179.24.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced 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%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Hershey Company will post 6.77 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.47%. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HSY has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of 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 lowered their price target 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. Bernstein Bank lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $164.15.

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.