The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) Forecasted to Earn Q2 2024 Earnings of $1.34 Per Share

The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) – Equities research analysts at DA Davidson issued their Q2 2024 earnings estimates for Hershey in a note issued to investors on Monday, May 6th. DA Davidson analyst B. Holland anticipates that the company will post earnings of $1.34 per share for the quarter. The consensus estimate for Hershey’s current full-year earnings is $9.60 per share. DA Davidson also issued estimates for Hershey’s FY2024 earnings at $9.63 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $9.75 EPS.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on HSY. BNP Paribas downgraded Hershey from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $208.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Hershey from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Edward Jones reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $213.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, March 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $213.06.

Hershey Trading Down 0.7 %

HSY opened at $196.49 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.97. Hershey has a one year low of $178.82 and a one year high of $275.89. The company has a market cap of $40.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.47, a PEG ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.33. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $192.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $190.80.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.33. Hershey had a net margin of 18.13% and a return on equity of 50.15%. The business had revenue of $3.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.96 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $349,448,000. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in shares of Hershey by 143.7% during the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,465,403 shares of the company’s stock worth $496,039,000 after buying an additional 1,453,819 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Hershey by 18,495.8% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 295,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,125,000 after acquiring an additional 294,083 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Hershey by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,182,809 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,830,683,000 after acquiring an additional 271,636 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 3,404.3% in the first quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 256,447 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,879,000 after purchasing an additional 249,129 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.90, for a total transaction of $296,850.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 40,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,961,121.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.31%.

Hershey Company 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.