The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Shares Acquired by Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC

Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 28.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,405 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 309 shares during the period. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $273,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new position in Hershey in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new stake in Hershey during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Hershey in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HSY has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Hershey from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $191.00 to $183.00 in a research report on Monday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Hershey from $185.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Edward Jones reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $213.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, March 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hershey has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $223.33.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE HSY traded down $0.99 on Friday, hitting $186.16. The stock had a trading volume of 1,186,506 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,496,720. The company’s 50-day moving average is $191.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $190.64. The stock has a market cap of $37.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The Hershey Company has a one year low of $178.82 and a one year high of $276.88.

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

Hershey Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.94%. 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. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.55%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.90, for a total value of $296,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 40,228 shares in the company, valued at $7,961,121.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 453 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.54, for a total transaction of $89,938.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $369,681.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.90, for a total transaction of $296,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 40,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,961,121.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 3,453 shares of company stock worth $665,534. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.