Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Price Target Raised to $195.00

Key Points

• Hershey's price target has been increased by Stifel Nicolaus from $185.00 to $195.00, indicating a potential upside of 7.49% from its previous close.
• Analysts currently hold a consensus rating of "Reduce" for Hershey, with the average price target set at $177.67.
• Recent quarterly earnings reported $1.21 EPS, beating estimates, with a 26.0% year-over-year revenue increase to $2.61 billion.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) had its price target hoisted by equities researchers at Stifel Nicolaus from $185.00 to $195.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "hold" rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus' target price would indicate a potential upside of 7.49% from the stock's previous close.

HSY has been the topic of several other reports. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Hershey from $155.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Bank of America raised their target price on Hershey from $175.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded Hershey from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Morgan Stanley set a $193.00 price target on Hershey in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hershey presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $177.67.

Hershey Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE:HSY traded down $0.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $181.42. 54,831 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,731,889. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.53. Hershey has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $208.03. The company has a market capitalization of $36.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.12, a P/E/G ratio of 4.44 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a fifty day moving average of $186.80 and a 200 day moving average of $175.32.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 37.36% and a net margin of 13.54%.Hershey's revenue for the quarter was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.27 earnings per share. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.809-5.997 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Hershey will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.52, for a total transaction of $281,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 56,819 shares in the company, valued at $10,654,698.88. The trade was a 2.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.00, for a total value of $3,742,260.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 193,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $37,563,056. The trade was a 9.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 22,290 shares of company stock worth $4,307,220 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Hershey by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,909 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,011,000 after buying an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Hershey by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 89,312 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,275,000 after acquiring an additional 2,687 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Hershey by 22.1% in the first quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,469 shares of the company's stock worth $593,000 after buying an additional 627 shares during the last quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Hershey by 4.4% during the first quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,889 shares of the company's stock worth $494,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the period. Finally, Spire Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 12.4% during the first quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 2,118 shares of the company's stock valued at $362,000 after buying an additional 234 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.96% of the company's stock.

Hershey Company Profile

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.

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