Hamel Associates Inc. Buys 2,341 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Hamel Associates Inc. boosted its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 15.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,263 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,341 shares during the period. Hamel Associates Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $3,173,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Hershey by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 121,193 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,595,000 after buying an additional 1,921 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey by 67.3% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,202 shares of the company’s stock worth $411,000 after buying an additional 886 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its holdings in Hershey by 26.3% in the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 18,080 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,371,000 after purchasing an additional 3,769 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 11,665 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,175,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares during the period. Finally, Lincoln National Corp raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Lincoln National Corp now owns 3,850 shares of the company’s stock valued at $718,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $644,912.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $644,912.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total transaction of $286,245.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,531,729.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,538 shares of company stock valued at $667,793. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HSY has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays decreased their target price on Hershey from $210.00 to $204.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Hershey from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup cut Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $195.00 to $182.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $237.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $202.79.

Hershey Stock Performance

Hershey stock traded down $0.08 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $198.61. 287,409 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,779,292. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $192.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $193.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The Hershey Company has a one year low of $178.82 and a one year high of $213.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.16 billion, a PE ratio of 19.69, a P/E/G ratio of 5.60 and a beta of 0.36.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.01 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.76%. Hershey’s payout ratio is 54.31%.

Hershey 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.