Drive Wealth Management LLC Takes Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Drive Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY – Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 1,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $239,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of HSY. Massachusetts Wealth Management increased its position in shares of Hershey by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Wealth Management now owns 5,932 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,090,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Glassy Mountain Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Glassy Mountain Advisors Inc. now owns 25,861 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,754,000 after buying an additional 908 shares in the last quarter. Claro Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 5.9% in the second quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 5,705 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,049,000 after buying an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. Summit Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey by 81.5% in the second quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 3,209 shares of the company’s stock valued at $590,000 after purchasing an additional 1,441 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Essex Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in Hershey by 7.8% during the 2nd quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 2,567 shares of the company’s stock worth $472,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the shares are held by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hershey’s stock performance

Shares of HSY stock opened at $193.06 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.48, and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $192.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $193.17. The company has a market cap of $39.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.60 and a beta of 0.36. The Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $178.82 and a 12-month high of $219.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY – Get Your Free Report ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.17). The business had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The company’s revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. In the same quarter last year, the company posted EPS of $2.01. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 9.5 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16. This represents an annualized dividend of $5.48 and a yield of 2.84%. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 54.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.93, for a total transaction of $274,395.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 35,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,535,723.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available via this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Monday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.93, for a total transaction of $274,395.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 35,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,535,723.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total transaction of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at $644,912.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 3,538 shares of company stock worth $667,793. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s shares.

Analysts set new price targets

HSY has been the subject of several research reports. Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Hershey in a report on Monday, August 12th. They set a “sell” rating and a $185.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup cut Hershey from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $195.00 to $182.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Hershey from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Argus cut shares of Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $204.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $202.79, according to MarketBeat.com.

Check out our latest analysis of HSY

About Hershey

(Free report)

The Hershey Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of confectionery and pantry products in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: North American Confectionery, North American Savory Snacks and International. Offers chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery; soft drinks with gum and mints, including mints, chewing gum and chewing gum; protein bars; pantry items such as baking ingredients, toppings, drinks and sundae syrups; and snack items including spreads, bars, snacks, mixes, popcorn and pretzels.

Featured stories

Want to see what other hedge funds HSY owns? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY – Free Report).

Get news and reviews for Hershey Daily – Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts’ ratings for Hershey and related companies with MarketBeat.com’s FREE daily email newsletter.