Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group Has $435,000 Stock Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group increased its holdings in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 26.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,331 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 491 shares during the period. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group’s holdings in Hershey were worth $435,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. acquired a new stake in Hershey during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new stake in Hershey during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. First Financial Corp IN acquired a new stake in Hershey during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its stake in Hershey by 121.3% during the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 135 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. BNP Paribas cut Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $208.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Hershey from $200.00 to $179.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Hershey from $185.00 to $193.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Hershey from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $235.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Hershey from $213.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $223.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In other Hershey news, insider Charles R. Raup sold 2,065 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.85, for a total value of $396,170.25. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 14,770 shares in the company, valued at $2,833,624.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Hershey news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total value of $89,938.62. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,862 shares in the company, valued at $369,681.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Charles R. Raup sold 2,065 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Friday, January 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.85, for a total value of $396,170.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 14,770 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,833,624.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 5,518 shares of company stock worth $1,066,414 over the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hershey Stock Performance

Hershey stock traded up $1.54 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $183.99. 668,128 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,974,050. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $192.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $191.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.52 billion, a PE ratio of 20.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.34. The Hershey Company has a one year low of $178.82 and a one year high of $276.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.72 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 51.79% and a net margin of 16.67%. Hershey’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.02 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Hershey Company will post 9.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This is a positive change from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.98%. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 60.55%.

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.