Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Cuts Stock Holdings in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lessened its holdings in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 43.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 134,308 shares of the company’s stock after selling 104,112 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp owned about 0.07% of Hershey worth $25,122,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 6.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 15,310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,618,000 after acquiring an additional 937 shares during the period. Kathmere Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Hershey by 29.7% in the second quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 2,246 shares of the company’s stock worth $373,000 after purchasing an additional 514 shares in the last quarter. Uncommon Cents Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the second quarter valued at about $505,000. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 46.0% in the 2nd quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. now owns 10,584 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,756,000 after buying an additional 3,336 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $255,000. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Stacy Taffet acquired 200 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $186.19 per share, for a total transaction of $37,238.00. Following the purchase, the insider owned 9,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,744,786.49. This represents a 2.18% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kirk Tanner bought 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was bought at an average price of $185.46 per share, for a total transaction of $370,920.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 47,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,876,115.60. The trade was a 4.36% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 6,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,119,450. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on HSY. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Hershey from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $195.00 to $211.00 in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $182.00 target price on Hershey and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Hershey from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Evercore ISI restated a “positive” rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $213.00 target price on shares of Hershey and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $191.83.

Hershey Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of HSY stock opened at $190.00 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.36. Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $201.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.53 billion, a PE ratio of 28.40 and a beta of 0.18. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $186.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $183.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.34 EPS. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.900-6.000 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th were issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 17th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 81.91%.

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.