Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) has been given an average rating of “Hold” by the twenty-two ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $187.3158.

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $170.00 to $222.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Hershey from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Argus upgraded shares of Hershey to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Hershey in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $181.00 price objective on the stock.

Hershey Stock Up 2.3%

HSY stock opened at $189.08 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.26 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’s 50 day simple moving average is $181.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $181.96.

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. The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 32.08%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.34 EPS. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.900-6.000 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Hershey will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th were issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 17th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.91%.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.51, for a total value of $282,765.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 53,819 shares in the company, valued at $10,145,419.69. The trade was a 2.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kirk Tanner bought 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $185.46 per share, for a total transaction of $370,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 47,860 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,876,115.60. The trade was a 4.36% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 6,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,102,725. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 2nd quarter worth about $234,386,000. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in Hershey by 240.0% during the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,262,671 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,183,000 after purchasing an additional 891,287 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the second quarter valued at approximately $125,868,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 121.2% in the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,104,299 shares of the company’s stock worth $206,559,000 after buying an additional 605,048 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Scharf Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 2nd quarter worth $90,588,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

About Hershey

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.