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

Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) CFO Steven Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.71, for a total transaction of $325,065.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 59,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,974,210.99. The trade was a 2.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Hershey Price Performance

HSY opened at $210.10 on Friday. Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $150.04 and a 1 year high of $239.48. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $213.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $194.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.58 billion, a PE ratio of 48.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.19.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.31. The firm had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 7.55% and a return on equity of 27.90%. Hershey’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.69 earnings per share. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.520 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were issued a dividend of $1.452 per share. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 17th. This is a positive change from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.37. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 133.87%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on HSY. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and issued a $188.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Hershey from $185.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Zacks Research raised shares of Hershey from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $236.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $222.68.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its position in shares of Hershey by 1,537.5% during the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 131 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Reflection Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Company Profile

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.