Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Downgraded by Royal Bank of Canada to “Sector Perform”

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) was downgraded by Royal Bank of Canada from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Briefing.com reports. They currently have a $213.00 price target on the stock, down from their previous price target of $239.00. Royal Bank of Canada’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 10.33% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on HSY. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $300.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 17th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on Hershey from $285.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 22nd. Barclays lowered their target price on Hershey from $265.00 to $218.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 12th. StockNews.com started coverage on Hershey in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, HSBC initiated coverage on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, September 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $248.00 price objective on the stock. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $246.05.

Hershey Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $193.06 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $196.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $226.76. The stock has a market cap of $39.48 billion, a PE ratio of 20.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. Hershey has a 52-week low of $183.74 and a 52-week high of $276.88.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 26th. The company reported $2.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.47 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $3.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 54.74% and a net margin of 17.11%. The company’s revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.17 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Hershey will post 9.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Monday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.00, for a total transaction of $310,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 35,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,413,912. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.00, for a total value of $310,500.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 35,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,413,912. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Pamela M. Arway sold 182 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.56, for a total transaction of $35,409.92. Following the transaction, the director now owns 15,562 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,027,742.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,682 shares of company stock worth $953,275 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Archer Investment Corp boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 139.3% during the second quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 1,077 shares of the company’s stock valued at $269,000 after acquiring an additional 627 shares during the last quarter. Toroso Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 5.2% during the first quarter. Toroso Investments LLC now owns 14,738 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,749,000 after buying an additional 723 shares in the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S raised its position in shares of Hershey by 1,525.5% in the second quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 39,386 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,835,000 after buying an additional 36,963 shares during the last quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the second quarter valued at approximately $556,000. Finally, Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC boosted its position in Hershey by 203.3% during the first quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 3,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $898,000 after acquiring an additional 2,366 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.47% 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; pantry items, such as baking ingredients, toppings, beverages, and sundae syrups; and snack items comprising spreads, bars, snack bites, mixes, popcorn, and pretzels.