Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Upgraded at Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Hershey (NYSE:HSY) from a neutral rating to an overweight rating in a research note published on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have $213.00 price target on the stock, up from their prior price target of $193.00.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Barclays set a $188.00 price objective on Hershey in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Evercore ISI reissued a “positive” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $187.00 to $189.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $187.32.

Hershey Stock Up 2.5%

Hershey stock opened at $184.61 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $37.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.60 and a beta of 0.18. Hershey has a 52-week low of $140.13 and a 52-week high of $199.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.36. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $181.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $181.68.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.24. Hershey had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 32.08%. The company had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.34 earnings per share. Hershey’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.900-6.000 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Hershey will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 17th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 17th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.91%.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CEO Kirk Tanner bought 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The shares were bought at an average price of $185.46 per share, for a total transaction of $370,920.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 47,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,876,115.60. The trade was a 4.36% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Stacy Taffet purchased 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The shares were bought at an average price of $186.19 per share, with a total value of $37,238.00. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 9,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,744,786.49. The trade was a 2.18% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 6,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,102,725 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hershey

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its holdings in Hershey by 1,537.5% during the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 131 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH bought a new position in shares of Hershey during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Company Profile

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is a leading North American chocolatier and snack manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The company develops, produces and markets a wide range of confectionery and snack products for retail, foodservice and international customers. Hershey’s business spans manufacturing, branded product marketing, packaging and distribution across grocery, convenience, mass merchant and e-commerce channels.

Hershey’s product portfolio centers on chocolate and sugar confectionery, including core brands such as Hershey’s, Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses and Twizzlers, alongside non-chocolate snacks and confectionery brands.