Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) Receives $222.68 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) have received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty-three analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $222.2105.

HSY has been the topic of several recent research reports. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Hershey in a research report on Friday, February 6th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Friday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $267.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, February 6th. Barclays raised their target price on Hershey from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price target on Hershey from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th.

Hershey Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of HSY stock opened at $206.29 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.18. Hershey has a twelve month low of $150.04 and a twelve month high of $239.48. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $216.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $196.09.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.31. The firm had revenue of $3.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 27.90% and a net margin of 7.55%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.69 earnings per share. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.520 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Hershey will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were issued a dividend of $1.452 per share. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 17th. This is a positive change from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.37. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 133.64%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Jason Reiman sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total value of $452,140.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 41,036 shares in the company, valued at $9,277,008.52. The trade was a 4.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Rohit Grover sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total value of $791,245.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 34,568 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,814,787.76. The trade was a 9.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 10,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,195,945. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HSY. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1,537.5% during the 3rd 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. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new position in Hershey during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Reflection Asset Management acquired a new stake in Hershey in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Hershey in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Institutional investors 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.