Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Updates FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

Key Points

• FY2026 guidance: Hershey set EPS guidance of $8.200–$8.520 (consensus $8.380) and revenue guidance of $12.2B–$12.3B (consensus $12.2B), broadly in line with Street expectations.
• Dividend increase: The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.452 (annualized $5.81), implying a ~2.8% yield and a high payout ratio of 133.9%.
• Recent results and sentiment: Hershey beat Q results with $1.71 EPS vs $1.40 est. and $3.09B revenue (+7% YoY), yet analyst coverage is mixed with a consensus rating of Hold and a $222.21 target price.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) updated its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Thursday. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 8.200-8.520 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 8.380. The company issued revenue guidance of $12.2 billion-$12.3 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $12.2 billion.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $249.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Barclays raised their price objective on Hershey from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. UBS Group lowered their target price on Hershey from $236.00 to $215.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Zacks Research lowered Hershey from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Hershey from $212.00 to $200.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $222.21.

Hershey Stock Up 0.6%

HSY traded up $1.36 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $210.35. 371,551 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,973,695. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.19. The company's fifty day moving average price is $217.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $196.47. The company has a market cap of $42.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.18. Hershey has a one year low of $150.04 and a one year high of $239.48.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last announced its 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. Hershey had a return on equity of 27.90% and a net margin of 7.55%.The firm had revenue of $3.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.69 EPS. The company's revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.520 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Hershey will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th were paid a $1.452 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 17th. This is a positive change from Hershey's previous quarterly dividend of $1.37. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. Hershey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 133.87%.

Insider Activity at Hershey

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 sale, the insider owned 34,568 shares in the company, valued at $7,814,787.76. This represents a 9.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Jason Reiman sold 2,000 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 value of $452,140.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 41,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,277,008.52. This represents a 4.65% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 10,000 shares of company stock worth $2,195,945. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,253,041 shares of the company's stock worth $1,356,681,000 after purchasing an additional 128,982 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Hershey by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,315,653 shares of the company's stock worth $967,343,000 after buying an additional 124,464 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in Hershey by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 3,080,266 shares of the company's stock worth $560,546,000 after buying an additional 64,533 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Hershey by 1.9% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,614,258 shares of the company's stock worth $301,947,000 after buying an additional 29,731 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in Hershey by 3.7% in the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,473,427 shares of the company's stock worth $275,605,000 after buying an additional 52,936 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.

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