Willis Investment Counsel Sells 27,248 Shares of Hershey Company (The) $HSY

by · The Cerbat Gem

Willis Investment Counsel trimmed its position in Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY – Free Report) by 14.3% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 163,492 shares of the company’s stock after selling 27,248 shares during the quarter. Hershey accounts for about 1.1% of Willis Investment Counsel’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Willis Investment Counsel’s holdings in Hershey were worth $25,768,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sylvest Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Hershey by 1.1% during the first quarter. Sylvest Advisors LLC now owns 5,042 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,048,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Delta Asset Management LLC TN boosted its position in shares of Hershey by 17.1% during the 2nd quarter. Delta Asset Management LLC TN now owns 410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 2.7% in the first quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,316 shares of the company’s stock valued at $481,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 10.7% in the third quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $111,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Krilogy Financial LLC increased its position in Hershey by 2.6% in the first quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC now owns 2,713 shares of the company’s stock worth $519,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hershey Trading Up 1.0%

NYSE HSY traded up $1.75 on Tuesday, hitting $168.75. 471,215 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,837,338. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 1.18. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $172.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $180.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.10. Hershey Company has a 52-week low of $156.16 and a 52-week high of $239.48.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.47. Hershey had a net margin of 12.24% and a return on equity of 31.92%. The business had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.63 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.21 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.360-8.520 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Hershey Company will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th were paid a dividend of $1.4520 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 79.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $198.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $249.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Hershey from $215.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Barclays reduced their price objective on Hershey from $200.00 to $178.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $178.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $199.44.

Get Our Latest Report on Hershey

Hershey Company Profile

(Free Report)

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a global confectionery and snack food manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Founded by Milton S. Hershey in 1894, the company began as a chocolate producer and has grown into one of the largest branded snack businesses in North America.

Hershey’s portfolio includes chocolate, non-chocolate confectionery, gum and mints, and salty snacks. Its brands include Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses, Kit Kat in the United States under license from Nestlé, Jolly Rancher, Twizzlers, Ice Breakers, SkinnyPop and Dot’s Pretzels.

Further Reading

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