Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $200.23 and last traded at $199.3280, with a volume of 1173502 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $195.29.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on HSY. Morgan Stanley raised Hershey from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $195.00 to $211.00 in a research note on Monday, December 15th. DA Davidson lowered their price objective on Hershey from $188.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 10th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Hershey from $204.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Evercore ISI reaffirmed a “positive” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $189.53.

Hershey Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day moving average of $184.42 and a 200 day moving average of $182.81. The company has a market cap of $40.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.55 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.24. Hershey had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 32.08%. The business had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.34 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.900-6.000 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Hershey Company 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th were given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 17th. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 81.91%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, insider Stacy Taffet acquired 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $186.19 per share, with a total value of $37,238.00. Following the completion of the purchase, 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 position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kirk Tanner acquired 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $185.46 per share, for a total transaction of $370,920.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 47,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,876,115.60. This trade represents a 4.36% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 6,000 shares of company stock worth $1,102,725. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hershey

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC raised its stake in Hershey by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 3,070 shares of the company’s stock valued at $559,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hershey by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 1,407 shares of the company’s stock worth $256,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Choreo LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hershey by 3.6% during the second quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 1,708 shares of the company’s stock valued at $283,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. raised its position in shares of Hershey by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 1,312 shares of the company’s stock worth $218,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bellevue Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Hershey by 13.5% in the 3rd quarter. Bellevue Asset Management LLC now owns 514 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.