Mutual of America Capital Management LLC Sells 518 Shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY)

Mutual of America Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 2.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 17,156 shares of the company’s stock after selling 518 shares during the quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,934,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Kennon Green & Company LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 33.3% during the 1st quarter. Kennon Green & Company LLC now owns 43,146 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,379,000 after buying an additional 10,784 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 9.5% during the 1st quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 31,925 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,460,000 after buying an additional 2,757 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 8.1% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 18,625 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,186,000 after buying an additional 1,390 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 8.1% during the 1st quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 21,151 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,617,000 after buying an additional 1,582 shares during the period. Finally, Elevate Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 23.2% during the 1st quarter. Elevate Capital Advisors LLC now owns 14,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,412,000 after buying an additional 2,657 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.11, for a total value of $153,025.14. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,994 shares in the company, valued at $470,387.34. This trade represents a 24.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $3,375,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 193,624 shares in the company, valued at $33,884,200. This represents a 9.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 54,107 shares of company stock valued at $9,008,118 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Stock Up 0.0%

NYSE HSY opened at $171.26 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $165.40 and a 200-day moving average of $164.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.40 and a beta of 0.30. Hershey Company has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $208.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.59.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $2.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.81 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 38.70% and a net margin of 15.32%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.07 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Hershey Company will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th were paid a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.20%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on HSY shares. Wall Street Zen cut Hershey from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday, July 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on Hershey from $178.00 to $175.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Citigroup dropped their price target on Hershey from $173.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Hershey from $183.00 to $177.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on Hershey from $167.00 to $155.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $158.84.

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.