Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Releases FY 2025 Earnings Guidance

Key Points

• Hershey has updated its FY 2025 earnings guidance, projecting earnings per share (EPS) between $5.809 and $5.997, which is slightly above the consensus estimate of $5.936.
• The company has also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.37 per share, which will be paid to stockholders on September 15th, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 2.94%.
• Despite beating analysts' estimates in its recent earnings report, Hershey's revenue was down 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year, highlighting potential challenges ahead.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) issued an update on its FY 2025 earnings guidance on Wednesday morning. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 5.809-5.997 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 5.936. The company issued revenue guidance of $11.4 billion-.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HSY traded up $2.57 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $188.70. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,072,840 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,902,214. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $169.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $165.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Hershey has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $208.03. The company has a market capitalization of $38.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.06, a P/E/G ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.27.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.23. Hershey had a net margin of 13.54% and a return on equity of 37.36%. The business had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.27 earnings per share. Hershey's revenue was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Hershey will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Hershey's payout ratio is currently 67.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on HSY. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Hershey from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Sunday, July 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on Hershey from $178.00 to $175.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Hershey from $135.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Hershey from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have issued a hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $168.37.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.00, for a total transaction of $3,742,260.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 193,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,563,056. This represents a 9.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 974 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.11, for a total transaction of $153,025.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $470,387.34. This represents a 24.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 118,311 shares of company stock worth $20,931,348 in the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

An institutional investor recently raised its position in Hershey stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 6.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,310 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 937 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd.'s holdings in Hershey were worth $2,618,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.