Zacks Research Comments on Hershey’s Q2 Earnings (NYSE:HSY)

The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) – Research analysts at Zacks Research lowered their Q2 2025 earnings estimates for shares of Hershey in a report released on Wednesday, May 21st. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now forecasts that the company will post earnings per share of $1.00 for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $1.09. The consensus estimate for Hershey’s current full-year earnings is $6.12 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Hershey’s Q3 2025 earnings at $1.48 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $1.43 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $6.00 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $0.97 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $1.55 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $6.30 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $2.38 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $7.52 EPS.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.15. Hershey had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 44.77%. The business had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.07 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on HSY. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $183.00 to $177.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Hershey from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $170.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Hershey from $173.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $161.40.

Hershey Stock Performance

Shares of HSY stock opened at $153.97 on Friday. Hershey has a 52 week low of $140.13 and a 52 week high of $208.03. The company has a market cap of $31.19 billion, a PE ratio of 14.13, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $165.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $167.18.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Hershey’s payout ratio is 67.57%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HSY. HB Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Hershey by 20.7% during the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,585 shares of the company’s stock valued at $607,000 after purchasing an additional 616 shares during the period. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC boosted its stake in Hershey by 8.3% during the 4th quarter. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC now owns 46,708 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,910,000 after purchasing an additional 3,578 shares during the period. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Hershey by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,272 shares of the company’s stock worth $724,000 after buying an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC raised its position in shares of Hershey by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 2,988 shares of the company’s stock worth $506,000 after buying an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Hershey by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,048 shares of the company’s stock worth $516,000 after buying an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Hershey

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.