Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Acquires 1,922 Shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 93,738 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,922 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $17,977,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in Hershey by 55.0% in the second quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 7,355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,411,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,631 shares of the company’s stock worth $484,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Hershey by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. now owns 4,067 shares of the company’s stock worth $748,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its holdings in Hershey by 10.4% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 647 shares of the company’s stock valued at $119,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on HSY. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Hershey from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Hershey from $205.00 to $183.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $189.33.

Hershey Stock Performance

HSY stock opened at $174.80 on Friday. The Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $168.16 and a twelve month high of $211.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The company has a market cap of $35.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.30 and a beta of 0.37. The business’s fifty day moving average is $181.00 and its 200-day moving average is $189.22.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s payout ratio is 63.13%.

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.