Brokers Issue Forecasts for Hershey’s Q3 Earnings (NYSE:HSY)

Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) – Analysts at Zacks Research decreased their Q3 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Hershey in a research report issued on Tuesday, August 19th. Zacks Research analyst Team now anticipates that the company will post earnings of $1.26 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $1.48. The consensus estimate for Hershey’s current full-year earnings is $6.12 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Hershey’s Q4 2025 earnings at $1.25 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $5.81 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $1.43 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $1.41 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $5.96 EPS.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.23. Hershey had a return on equity of 37.36% and a net margin of 13.54%.The firm had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.27 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.809-5.997 EPS.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on HSY. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Hershey from $135.00 to $154.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Hershey from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. UBS Group cut their price objective on Hershey from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Hershey from $173.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Hershey in a research report on Wednesday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $187.00 target price for the company. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $170.83.

Hershey Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:HSY opened at $181.4760 on Friday. Hershey has a 1 year low of $140.13 and a 1 year high of $208.03. The company has a market cap of $36.79 billion, a PE ratio of 24.10, a P/E/G ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $176.26 and its 200 day moving average is $169.34.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Hershey during the first quarter worth $28,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH purchased a new position in Hershey in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Tradewinds Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey by 129.5% in the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Michele Buck sold 31,210 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.80, for a total value of $5,018,568.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 193,624 shares in the company, valued at $31,134,739.20. The trade was a 13.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.11, for a total transaction of $153,025.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 2,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $470,387.34. The trade was a 24.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 118,311 shares of company stock worth $20,931,348 over the last 90 days. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 72.78%.

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.