Jefferies Financial Group Cuts Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Price Target to $134.00

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its price objective cut by Jefferies Financial Group from $150.00 to $134.00 in a research note published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an underperform rating on the stock.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on HSY. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $171.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of Hershey from $168.00 to $153.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $172.32.

Hershey Price Performance

HSY stock opened at $149.84 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $170.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $183.73. Hershey has a 1 year low of $148.74 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The stock has a market cap of $30.32 billion, a PE ratio of 17.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.30 and a beta of 0.38. 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 Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.66%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is 63.13%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new stake in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,337,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Hershey by 66.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,571,000 after buying an additional 389,404 shares in the last quarter. Woodstock Corp boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 34.8% in the fourth quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 6,896 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,168,000 after buying an additional 1,780 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in Hershey by 61.9% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 120,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,052,000 after buying an additional 45,936 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pensionfund Sabic increased its stake in Hershey by 55.6% during the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 8,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,423,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

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.