TrueMark Investments LLC Increases Stock Holdings in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

TrueMark Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 22,292 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 959 shares during the quarter. TrueMark Investments LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $3,775,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its stake in Hershey by 248.0% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 61.7% during the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HSY has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $178.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays reduced their price target on Hershey from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Citigroup raised Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $159.00 to $154.00 in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.67.

Hershey Stock Performance

Hershey stock opened at $165.09 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.42 billion, a PE ratio of 15.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $163.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $174.34. The Hershey Company has a one year low of $140.13 and a one year high of $211.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.96.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th were paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.32%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.28%.

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.