Marathon Trading Investment Management LLC Makes New $931,000 Investment in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Marathon Trading Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 5,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $931,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 248.0% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its stake in Hershey by 61.7% in the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at $46,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on HSY. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Bernstein Bank cut their target price on Hershey from $177.00 to $146.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Piper Sandler cut Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $153.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $134.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, DA Davidson decreased their target price on shares of Hershey from $164.00 to $149.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $164.15.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. This 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 hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE:HSY opened at $186.19 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $161.83 and its 200-day moving average is $176.33. The Hershey Company has a 1-year low of $140.13 and a 1-year high of $211.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The stock has a market cap of $37.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32.

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

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 50.28%.

Hershey Company 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.