Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Price Target Cut to $159.00 by Analysts at Citigroup

Hershey (NYSE:HSYFree Report) had its price target decreased by Citigroup from $165.00 to $159.00 in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Citigroup currently has a sell rating on the stock.

HSY has been the topic of several other research reports. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Hershey from $163.00 to $161.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Hershey from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. UBS Group cut Hershey from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $226.00 to $209.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $183.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $182.21.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on HSY

Hershey Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $162.51 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $174.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $185.77. Hershey has a 1 year low of $159.87 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.38 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s payout ratio is currently 63.13%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Farmers Trust Co. grew its position in shares of Hershey by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Farmers Trust Co. now owns 3,913 shares of the company’s stock worth $663,000 after buying an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC grew its holdings in Hershey by 15.5% during the 4th quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 317,461 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,762,000 after acquiring an additional 42,550 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $200,000. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 18.6% in the 4th quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 24,545 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,157,000 after purchasing an additional 3,841 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pensionfund Sabic lifted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Company Profile

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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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Analyst Recommendations for Hershey (NYSE:HSY)

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