The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Purchased by Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 13.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 101,460 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,971 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.05% of Hershey worth $19,618,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Hershey by 55.0% during the second quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY boosted its position in Hershey by 0.8% during the third quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 7,355 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,411,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. boosted its position in Hershey by 3.7% during the second quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 1,673 shares of the company’s stock worth $308,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Hershey by 2.3% during the second quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,631 shares of the company’s stock worth $484,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rehmann Capital Advisory Group boosted its position in Hershey by 5.4% during the first quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 1,165 shares of the company’s stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Price Performance

HSY stock opened at $181.26 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.86. The Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $178.82 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The firm has a market cap of $36.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 0.37. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $192.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $192.72.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a net margin of 16.76% and a return on equity of 45.36%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.01 EPS. Hershey’s quarterly revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that The Hershey Company will post 9.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.02%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.89%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was 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. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on HSY shares. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Hershey in a research report on Monday, August 12th. They set a “sell” rating and a $185.00 target price on the stock. Barclays reduced their price objective on Hershey from $204.00 to $202.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Hershey from $179.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Hershey from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $184.00 to $163.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $191.55.

Hershey Profile

The Hershey Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of confectionery products and pantry items in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: North America Confectionery, North America Salty Snacks, and International. It offers chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery products; gum and mint refreshment products, including mints, chewing gums, and bubble gums; protein bars; pantry items, such as baking ingredients, toppings, beverages, and sundae syrups; and snack items comprising spreads, bars, snack bites, mixes, popcorn, and pretzels.