Sentry Investment Management LLC Sells 84 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Sentry Investment Management LLC cut its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 9.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 786 shares of the company’s stock after selling 84 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $147,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. bought a new position in Hershey in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. First Financial Corp IN acquired a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its holdings in Hershey by 121.3% during the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 135 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Hershey from $185.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $213.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $179.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on Hershey from $213.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $223.33.

Hershey Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $182.45 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $192.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $191.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.34. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $178.82 and a 1 year high of $276.88.

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

Hershey Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a $1.37 dividend. This is a positive change from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total value of $89,938.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $369,681.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.97, for a total value of $283,455.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 29,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,634,329.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total value of $89,938.62. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,862 shares in the company, valued at $369,681.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 5,518 shares of company stock worth $1,066,414. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.