Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Earns Neutral Rating from Analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating for Hershey, raising the price target from $146 to $187.00, indicating a potential upside of 3.52% from the previous close.
• Hershey reported $1.21 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, with a revenue of $2.61 billion, marking a 26.0% increase compared to the same quarter last year.
• Fourteen analysts have given Hershey a "Hold" rating, while the consensus price target stands at $170.83, reflecting a relatively cautious outlook on the stock.

Analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) in a research report issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage set a "neutral" rating and a $187.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price target would suggest a potential upside of 3.04% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on HSY. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Hershey from $171.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Hershey from $135.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Hershey from $173.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $170.83.

Hershey Stock Performance

HSY traded up $2.1160 on Wednesday, reaching $181.4760. The stock had a trading volume of 1,110,298 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,682,701. Hershey has a 12-month low of $140.13 and a 12-month high of $208.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The business's 50-day moving average price is $176.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $169.34. The company has a market cap of $36.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.27.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $900,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 61,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,037,420. This represents a 7.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP James Turoff sold 1,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $227,500.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 25,321 shares in the company, valued at $4,431,175. The trade was a 4.88% 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 three months. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Kennon Green & Company LLC increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 33.3% in the 1st quarter. Kennon Green & Company LLC now owns 43,146 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,379,000 after acquiring an additional 10,784 shares during the last quarter. William Allan Corp lifted its holdings in Hershey by 173.1% during the 1st quarter. William Allan Corp now owns 18,593 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,180,000 after purchasing an additional 11,785 shares during the last quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd lifted its holdings in Hershey by 9.5% during the 1st quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 31,925 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,460,000 after purchasing an additional 2,757 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its position in Hershey by 8.1% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 18,625 shares of the company's stock worth $3,186,000 after buying an additional 1,390 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the first quarter worth $55,269,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company's stock.

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.