Hershey (HSY) – Investment Analysts’ Recent Ratings Updates

Hershey (NYSE: HSY) has recently received a number of price target changes and ratings updates:

• 2/10/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at DA Davidson from $164.00 to $149.00. They now have a “neutral” rating on the stock.
• 2/10/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at Barclays PLC from $170.00 to $160.00. They now have an “equal weight” rating on the stock.
• 2/7/2025 – Hershey was upgraded by analysts at Citigroup Inc. from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating. They now have a $154.00 price target on the stock, down previously from $159.00.
• 2/7/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $170.00 to $160.00. They now have a “hold” rating on the stock.
• 2/5/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at Bernstein Bank from $177.00 to $146.00. They now have a “market perform” rating on the stock.
• 2/5/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at Mizuho from $170.00 to $140.00.
• 2/3/2025 – Hershey had its “sector perform” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Royal Bank of Canada. They now have a $178.00 price target on the stock.
• 1/31/2025 – Hershey was downgraded by analysts at Piper Sandler from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating. They now have a $120.00 price target on the stock, down previously from $153.00.
• 1/24/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $180.00 to $170.00. They now have a “hold” rating on the stock.
• 1/23/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from $184.00 to $148.00. They now have a “hold” rating on the stock.
• 1/21/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at Jefferies Financial Group Inc. from $150.00 to $134.00. They now have an “underperform” rating on the stock.
• 1/17/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $150.00 to $140.00. They now have an “underweight” rating on the stock.
• 1/17/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at Barclays PLC from $180.00 to $170.00. They now have an “equal weight” rating on the stock.
• 1/16/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at UBS Group AG from $189.00 to $163.00. They now have a “neutral” rating on the stock.
• 1/16/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at Piper Sandler from $168.00 to $153.00. They now have a “neutral” rating on the stock.
• 1/16/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $171.00 to $151.00. They now have a “neutral” rating on the stock.
• 1/8/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at Citigroup Inc. from $165.00 to $159.00. They now have a “sell” rating on the stock.
• 1/8/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at TD Cowen from $190.00 to $172.00. They now have a “hold” rating on the stock.
• 1/7/2025 – Hershey had its price target lowered by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $160.00 to $150.00. They now have an “underweight” rating on the stock.

Hershey Stock Performance

Hershey stock opened at $178.12 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $160.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $177.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The Hershey Company has a 12-month low of $140.13 and a 12-month high of $211.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.34, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.37.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.29. Hershey had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 19.83%. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th will be given a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.08%. Hershey’s payout ratio is 50.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of Hershey stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares in the company, valued at $396,936. This trade represents a 9.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hershey

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,337,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Hershey by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,571,000 after buying an additional 389,404 shares during the period. Woodstock Corp grew its position in shares of Hershey by 34.8% during the 4th quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 6,896 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,168,000 after buying an additional 1,780 shares during the period. Elevate Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter worth about $1,939,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Hershey by 61.9% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 120,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,052,000 after buying an additional 45,936 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.