LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI Has $2.93 Million Stock Holdings in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI lowered its position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 15.9% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 15,669 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,956 shares during the period. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI’s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,931,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH bought a new stake in shares of Hershey in the second quarter worth $28,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey in the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its position in Hershey by 46.3% during the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 199 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the 2nd quarter valued at about $39,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hershey Trading Up 0.7%

HSY stock opened at $189.40 on Friday. Hershey Company has a one year low of $140.13 and a one year high of $199.00. The stock has a market cap of $38.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.31 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $181.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $180.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 32.08%. Hershey’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.34 EPS. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.900-6.000 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 17th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 17th. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 81.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on HSY shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Hershey from $187.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on Hershey from $188.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $170.00 to $222.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. Barclays set a $188.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $184.95.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Stacy Taffet acquired 200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $186.19 per share, for a total transaction of $37,238.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,744,786.49. This represents a 2.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Kirk Tanner bought 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $185.46 per share, with a total value of $370,920.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 47,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,876,115.60. This represents a 4.36% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 6,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,102,725. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Hershey

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a leading North American chocolatier and snack manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The company develops, produces and markets a wide range of confectionery and snack products for retail, foodservice and international customers. Hershey’s business spans manufacturing, branded product marketing, packaging and distribution across grocery, convenience, mass merchant and e-commerce channels.

Hershey’s product portfolio centers on chocolate and sugar confectionery, including core brands such as Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses and Twizzlers, alongside non-chocolate snacks and confectionery brands.