Mawer Investment Management Ltd. Lowers Position in The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY)

Mawer Investment Management Ltd. lowered its stake in shares of The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) by 1.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 384,997 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,402 shares during the period. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. owned about 0.19% of Hershey worth $70,774,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its holdings in Hershey by 218.2% during the second quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in Hershey during the first quarter worth about $29,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Hershey during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Hershey during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey during the first quarter worth about $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSY has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $204.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Hershey in a report on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $185.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Hershey from $209.00 to $205.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $202.79.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of HSY stock opened at $203.25 on Tuesday. The Hershey Company has a one year low of $178.82 and a one year high of $213.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.86. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $193.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $193.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.80 and a beta of 0.37.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.17). Hershey had a return on equity of 45.36% and a net margin of 16.76%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.01 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 9.5 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.31%.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total value of $286,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,531,729.24. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 538 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.17, for a total value of $107,153.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at $644,912.46. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.83, for a total transaction of $286,245.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 34,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,531,729.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,538 shares of company stock valued at $667,793 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.