Hershey (NYSE:HSY) CFO Steven Voskuil Sells 1,500 Shares

Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) CFO Steven Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.67, for a total transaction of $298,005.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 52,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,394,215.73. The trade was a 2.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Hershey Trading Down 2.8%

Shares of Hershey stock opened at $190.60 on Friday. Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $201.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.49 and a beta of 0.18. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $186.11 and a 200 day moving average of $183.39.

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

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th were given 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 dividend yield of 2.9%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.91%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 3,070 shares of the company’s stock worth $559,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. raised its stake in Hershey by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 1,407 shares of the company’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Choreo LLC lifted its holdings in Hershey by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 1,708 shares of the company’s stock worth $283,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Bellevue Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 13.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bellevue Asset Management LLC now owns 514 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 12.3% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 567 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hershey in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. DA Davidson lowered their target price on Hershey from $188.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 10th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Hershey in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. They set a “hold” rating and a $181.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company set a $182.00 price objective on shares of Hershey and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $213.00 price objective on shares of Hershey and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $191.83.

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.