Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Price Target Cut to $215.00 by Analysts at Stifel Nicolaus

Key Points

• Stifel Nicolaus cut its price target on Hershey to $215 (from $230) and kept a "hold" rating, implying roughly a 12.1% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst coverage is mixed: the consensus rating is "Hold" with an average target of $224.94 (six Buy vs. seventeen Hold), though some firms like Stephens and Morgan Stanley maintain higher targets up to $260 and $247 respectively.
• Hershey recently beat quarterly estimates, reporting $1.71 EPS vs. $1.40 expected and $3.09B in revenue vs. $2.97B, and set FY2026 guidance of $8.20–$8.52 EPS (street expects ~8.37).

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by research analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $230.00 to $215.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday. The brokerage presently has a "hold" rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus' price objective would indicate a potential upside of 12.13% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on HSY. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. UBS Group lowered their target price on Hershey from $236.00 to $215.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Hershey from $238.00 to $247.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, March 16th. Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Stephens increased their target price on Hershey from $200.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hershey presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $224.94.

Hershey Stock Performance

HSY opened at $191.74 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $38.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $215.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $197.02. Hershey has a 1-year low of $150.04 and a 1-year high of $239.48.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $3.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.97 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 27.90% and a net margin of 7.55%.The company's revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.69 EPS. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.520 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Hershey will post 8.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hershey news, insider Rohit Grover sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total transaction of $791,245.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 34,568 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,814,787.76. This represents a 9.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.71, for a total value of $325,065.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,974,210.99. This represents a 2.44% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 8,500 shares of company stock valued at $1,897,940 in the last quarter. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in HSY. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in shares of Hershey by 6.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 15,310 shares of the company's stock worth $2,618,000 after buying an additional 937 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Hershey by 20.2% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 697 shares of the company's stock worth $116,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new position in shares of Hershey in the 2nd quarter worth $267,000. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its position in shares of Hershey by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 17,927 shares of the company's stock worth $2,975,000 after buying an additional 769 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Hershey by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 22,247 shares of the company's stock worth $3,692,000 after buying an additional 1,149 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.

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