Moran Wealth Management LLC Increases Stock Position in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Moran Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 3.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 91,757 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,338 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $17,163,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in Hershey during the second quarter worth about $224,000. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the second quarter valued at approximately $271,000. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 4.8% during the 2nd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 58,078 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,695,000 after purchasing an additional 2,659 shares in the last quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN raised its position in shares of Hershey by 895.4% during the 2nd quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 25,373 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,211,000 after purchasing an additional 22,824 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Uncommon Cents Investing LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $505,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $180.03 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market cap of $36.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.91 and a beta of 0.18. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $180.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $181.66. Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $140.13 and a 12-month high of $199.00.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.24. Hershey had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 32.08%. The business had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.34 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.900-6.000 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 17th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSY has been the subject of several recent research reports. UBS Group dropped their price target on Hershey from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 31st. BNP Paribas Exane raised Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $182.00 price objective on Hershey and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Hershey from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, DA Davidson decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $188.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and seventeen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $187.32.

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.