Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 7,975 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 35.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,252 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,975 shares during the period. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,414,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HSY. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new stake in Hershey in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,337,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Hershey by 66.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,571,000 after acquiring an additional 389,404 shares during the last quarter. Woodstock Corp increased its holdings in Hershey by 34.8% in the 4th quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 6,896 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,168,000 after acquiring an additional 1,780 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Hershey by 61.9% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 120,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,052,000 after acquiring an additional 45,936 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pensionfund Sabic increased its holdings in Hershey by 55.6% in the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 8,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,423,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on HSY. TD Cowen reduced their target price on Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $183.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Hershey in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “sell” rating and a $165.00 target price for the company. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on Hershey from $165.00 to $159.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $170.05.

Hershey Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE HSY opened at $152.00 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $167.44 and a 200-day moving average of $182.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.51, a PEG ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 0.38. The Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $147.60 and a 12 month high of $211.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.61%. Hershey’s payout ratio is 63.13%.

About Hershey

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.