Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) has earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty-two analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $197.5556.

HSY has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $185.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research report on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Hershey from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Bank of America upped their target price on Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Argus upgraded Hershey to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 26th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Hershey from $204.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 31st.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other news, CEO Kirk Tanner acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $185.46 per share, for a total transaction of $370,920.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 47,860 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,876,115.60. This represents a 4.36% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Stacy Taffet bought 200 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $186.19 per share, with a total value of $37,238.00. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 9,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,744,786.49. The trade was a 2.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 6,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,119,450. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hershey by 1,537.5% in the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 131 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Price Performance

NYSE:HSY opened at $224.00 on Friday. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $188.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $185.53. Hershey has a 1-year low of $150.04 and a 1-year high of $225.55. The firm has a market cap of $45.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.48 and a beta of 0.18.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.31. Hershey had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 32.08%. The company had revenue of $3.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.69 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.520 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Hershey will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be paid a dividend of $1.452 per share. This is an increase from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.37. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 81.91%.

Key Stories Impacting Hershey

Here are the key news stories impacting Hershey this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings and revenue beat consensus: adjusted EPS $1.71 vs. ~$1.40 expected and revenue $3.09B, with organic growth helped by prior price increases — supports upside to the stock. Hershey Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Management raised FY2026 guidance to EPS $8.20–$8.52 (well above consensus ~$7.08) and revenue roughly $12.2–$12.3B, signaling confidence in a margin recovery and stronger 2026 profit trajectory. Hershey sees strong 2026 (Reuters)
• Positive Sentiment: Board approved a 6% increase to the quarterly dividend to $1.452 per share (yield ~2.6%), a capital-return signal that supports income investors and underlines management’s confidence. Hershey Declares Quarterly Dividends (PRNewswire)
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and outlets are raising targets and optimistic commentary is increasing (examples: Deutsche Bank tweak, DA Davidson / Jefferies notes), which can add momentum to the rally. Deutsche Bank Lifts Hershey Target (InsiderMonkey)
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings-call prepared remarks and analyst summaries provide detail on drivers (pricing, cost recovery plans, channel mix); these give color for modeling but are not new catalysts by themselves. Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript (Seeking Alpha)
• Negative Sentiment: Cocoa prices and tariffs remain a headwind: company noted margin pressure from high cocoa costs and tariffs, and several news pieces flag continued commodity/tariff drag — a risk to near-term margins if costs don’t moderate. Hershey Profit Dragged Down (WSJ)
• Negative Sentiment: Cocoa futures jumped on the day (short covering after Hershey guidance eased demand concerns), which could push input costs higher and tighten margins if the move persists. Cocoa Prices Settle Sharply Higher (Barchart)

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.