The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest in November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 7,470,000 shares, a drop of 5.7% from the November 15th total of 7,920,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,840,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.1 days.
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HSY. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Hershey by 55.0% during the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 155 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY grew its stake in Hershey by 0.8% during the third quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 7,355 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,411,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in Hershey by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,631 shares of the company's stock worth $484,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Hershey by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. now owns 4,067 shares of the company's stock valued at $748,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its position in shares of Hershey by 10.4% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 647 shares of the company's stock valued at $119,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
HSY has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $183.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Mizuho decreased their price target on Hershey from $200.00 to $180.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. Barclays lowered their price target on Hershey from $202.00 to $180.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $163.00 to $161.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of Hershey from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $185.17.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on HSY
NYSE:HSY opened at $178.22 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.06 billion, a PE ratio of 20.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.24 and a beta of 0.37. The firm's 50 day moving average is $179.74 and its 200 day moving average is $188.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. Hershey has a 12 month low of $168.16 and a 12 month high of $211.92.
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.07%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.13%.
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.
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