Hershey (HSY) Stock Price, News & Analysis

Company Overview

The Hershey Company, commonly known as Hershey (NYSE: HSY), is a leading global confectionery and snack manufacturer headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Founded by Milton S. Hershey in 1894, the company began with the iconic Hershey’s Milk Chocolate bar and has since expanded to include a diverse portfolio of sweet and savory products. Over more than a century of operation, Hershey has built a reputation for quality, innovation and community engagement, becoming one of the most recognizable names in the sweets industry.

Hershey’s core business revolves around the production and marketing of chocolate confectionery, gum, mints and various snack items. Its product lineup includes flagship brands such as Hershey’s, Reese’s, Kit Kat (under license), Kisses, Twizzlers and Ice Breakers, alongside a growing range of snack bars, cookies, spreads and frozen novelties. The company invests heavily in research and development to introduce new flavors, formats and packaging solutions tailored to evolving consumer tastes and snacking occasions.

While the United States remains Hershey’s primary market, the company has steadily expanded its international presence across Canada, Mexico, Europe, Asia and Latin America. Hershey products are distributed through a broad network of grocery chains, mass merchandisers, convenience stores, drugstores, vending channels and e-commerce platforms. Strategic partnerships, joint ventures and licensing agreements help the company navigate regional preferences and regulatory environments in key growth markets.

Under the leadership of President and Chief Executive Officer Michele Buck, Hershey continues to focus on sustainable sourcing, environmental stewardship and social responsibility. The company’s Cocoa For Good program supports smallholder farmers, while its global efforts target responsible manufacturing practices and community impact initiatives. Looking ahead, Hershey aims to balance steady revenue growth with investments in innovation, digital capabilities and expanded global reach.

Key Stats

• Today's Range: $175.02 to $177.55
• 50-Day Range: $151.37 to $177.18
• 52-Week Range: $140.13 to $208.03
• Volume: 733,761 shs
• Average Volume: 1.80 million shs
• Market Capitalization: $35.05 billion
• P/E Ratio: 21.33
• Dividend Yield: 3.17%
• Price Target: $158.84
• Consensus Rating: Reduce

Hershey Stock Analysis - MarketRank™

Hershey scored higher than 79% of companies evaluated by MarketBeat, and ranked 50th out of 143 stocks in the consumer staples sector. Scores are calculated by averaging available category scores, with extra weight given to analysis and valuation.

Analyst's Opinion

• Score: 1.9 / 5
• Analyst Rating: Reduce

Consensus Rating

Hershey has received a consensus rating of Reduce. The company's average rating score is 1.75, and is based on no buy ratings, 15 hold ratings, and 5 sell ratings.

Amount of Analyst Coverage

Hershey has been the subject of 8 research reports in the past 90 days, demonstrating strong analyst interest in this stock.

Earnings and Valuation

• Score: 1.9 / 5
• Proj. Earnings Growth: 11.60%

Earnings Growth

Earnings for Hershey are expected to grow by 11.60% in the coming year, from $6.12 to $6.83 per share.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. the Market

The P/E ratio of Hershey is 21.33, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the market average P/E ratio of about 25.65.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. Sector

The P/E ratio of Hershey is 21.33, which means that it is trading at a more expensive P/E ratio than the Consumer Staples sector average P/E ratio of about 20.33.

Price to Earnings Growth Ratio

Hershey has a PEG Ratio of 6.52. PEG Ratios above 1 indicate that a company could be overvalued.

Price to Book Value per Share Ratio

Hershey has a P/B Ratio of 7.42. P/B Ratios above 3 indicate that a company could be overvalued with respect to its assets and liabilities.

Short Interest

• Score: 2.0 / 5
• Short Interest Level: Bearish

Percentage of Shares Shorted

4.64% of the float of Hershey has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Hershey has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 5.6.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Hershey has recently increased by 9.46%, indicating that investor sentiment is decreasing significantly.

Dividend

• Score: 3.3 / 5
• Dividend Strength: Strong

Dividend Yield

Hershey pays a meaningful dividend of 3.11%, higher than the bottom 25% of all stocks that pay dividends.

Dividend Growth

Hershey has been increasing its dividend for 15 years.

Dividend Coverage

The dividend payout ratio of Hershey is 67.57%. This payout ratio is at a healthy, sustainable level, below 75%.

Dividend Sustainability

Based on EPS estimates, Hershey will have a dividend payout ratio of 80.23% in the coming year. This indicates that Hershey may not be able to sustain their current dividend.

Sustainability and ESG

• Score: 1.9 / 5
• Environmental Score: -1.32

Percentage of Shares Shorted

4.64% of the float of Hershey has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Hershey has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 5.6.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Hershey has recently increased by 9.46%, indicating that investor sentiment is decreasing significantly.

News and Social Media

• Score: 2.6 / 5
• News Sentiment: 0.73

News Sentiment

Hershey has a news sentiment score of 0.73. This score is calculated as an average of sentiment of articles about the company over the last seven days and ranges from 2 (good news) to -2 (bad news). This news sentiment score is similar to the average news sentiment of Consumer Staples companies.

News Coverage This Week

MarketBeat has tracked 47 news articles for Hershey this week, compared to 26 articles on an average week.

Search Interest

22 people have searched for HSY on MarketBeat in the last 30 days. This is an increase of 57% compared to the previous 30 days.

MarketBeat Follows

Only 5 people have added Hershey to their MarketBeat watchlist in the last 30 days. This is a decrease of -50% compared to the previous 30 days.

Company Ownership

• Score: 1.7 / 5
• Insider Trading: Selling Shares

Insider Buying vs. Insider Selling

In the past three months, Hershey insiders have sold more of their company's stock than they have bought. Specifically, they have bought $0.00 in company stock and sold $9,008,118.00 in company stock.

Percentage Held by Insiders

Only 0.34% of the stock of Hershey is held by insiders.

Percentage Held by Institutions

57.96% of the stock of Hershey is held by institutions. High institutional ownership can be a signal of strong market trust in this company.

HSY Stock Analysis - Frequently Asked Questions

How have HSY shares performed this year?

Hershey's stock was trading at $169.35 at the beginning of the year. Since then, HSY shares have increased by 2.2% and is now trading at $173.00.

How were Hershey's earnings last quarter?

Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) released its earnings results on Thursday, May, 1st. The company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.15. Hershey's quarterly revenue was down 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year.
Read the conference call transcript.

Does Hershey have any subsidiaries?

The following companies are subsidiaries of Hershey: Dot's Pretzels, Lily's Sweets, One Brands LLC, Pirate Brands, Amplify Snack Brands2, Ripple Brand Collective LLC, Krave Pure Foods, and more.

Who are Hershey's major shareholders?

Hershey's top institutional investors include Confluence Investment Management LLC (0.38%), LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI (0.01%), Sage Capital Advisors llc (0.01%) and HBW Advisory Services LLC. Insiders that own company stock include Hershey Trust Co Trustee In Tr, Michele Buck, Hershey Trust Co, Rohit Grover, Steven E Voskuil, James Turoff, Jason Reiman, Pamela M Arway, Charles R Raup, Robert Malcolm, Christopher M Scalia, Kristen J Riggs and Jennifer Mccalman.
View institutional ownership trends.

How do I buy shares of Hershey?

Shares of HSY stock can be purchased through any online brokerage account. Popular online brokerages with access to the U.S. stock market include Charles Schwab, E*TRADE, Fidelity, and Vanguard Brokerage Services.

What other stocks do shareholders of Hershey own?

Based on aggregate information from My MarketBeat watchlists, some other companies that Hershey investors own include Salesforce (CRM), Chevron (CVX), AbbVie (ABBV), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), CocaCola (KO), Home Depot (HD) and Merck & Co., Inc. (MRK).

Company Calendar

• Last Earnings: 5/01/2025
• Record date for 6/16 Dividend: 5/16/2025
• Ex-Dividend for 6/16 Dividend: 5/16/2025
• Dividend Payable: 6/16/2025
• Today: 7/06/2025
• Next Earnings (Estimated): 7/30/2025
• Fiscal Year End: 12/31/2025

Industry, Sector and Symbol

• Stock Exchange: NYSE
• Sector: Consumer Staples
• Industry: FOOD - CONFECTNRY
• Sub-Industry: Packaged Foods & Meats
• Current Symbol: NYSE:HSY
• CIK: 47111
• Web: www.thehersheycompany.com
• Phone: (717) 534-4200
• Fax: 717-534-7873
• Employees: 20,030
• Year Founded: 1894

Price Target and Rating

• Average Stock Price Target: $158.84
• High Stock Price Target: $185.00
• Low Stock Price Target: $120.00
• Potential Upside/Downside: -8.2%
• Consensus Rating: Reduce
• Rating Score (0-4): 1.75
• Research Coverage: 20 Analysts

Profitability

• EPS (Trailing Twelve Months): $8.11
• Trailing P/E Ratio: 21.33
• Forward P/E Ratio: 28.27
• P/E Growth: 6.52
• Net Income: $2.22 billion
• Net Margins: 15.32%
• Pretax Margin: 16.84%
• Return on Equity: 38.70%
• Return on Assets: 13.12%

Debt

• Debt-to-Equity Ratio: 1.11
• Current Ratio: 1.59
• Quick Ratio: 1.11

Sales & Book Value

• Annual Sales: $11.20 billion
• Price / Sales: 3.13
• Cash Flow: $11.44 per share
• Price / Cash Flow: 15.12
• Book Value: $23.30 per share
• Price / Book: 7.42

Miscellaneous

• Outstanding Shares: 202,600,000
• Free Float: 201,915,000
• Market Cap: $35.05 billion
• Optionable: Optionable
• Beta: 0.30