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Hershey (HSY) Stock Forecast & Price Target

Hershey logo
$163.04 -1.87 (-1.13%)
As of 02:12 PM Eastern
This is a fair market value price provided by Polygon.io. Learn more.

Hershey - Analysts' Recommendations and Stock Price Forecast (2025)

MarketBeat calculates consensus analyst ratings for stocks using the most recent rating from each Wall Street analyst that has rated a stock within the last twelve months. Each analyst's rating is normalized to a standardized rating score of 1 (sell), 2 (hold), 3 (buy) or 4 (strong buy). Analyst consensus ratings scores are calculated using the mean average of the number of normalized sell, hold, buy and strong buy ratings from Wall Street analysts. Each stock's consensus analyst rating is derived from its calculated consensus ratings score (0 to .5 = Strong Sell, .5 to 1 = Sell, 1 to 1.5 = Reduce, 1.5 to 2.5 = Hold, 2.5 to 3.0 = Moderate Buy, 3.0 to 3.5 = Buy, >3.5 = Strong Buy). MarketBeat's consensus price targets are a mean average of the most recent available price targets set by each analyst that has set a price target for the stock in the last twelve months. MarketBeat's consensus ratings and consensus price targets may differ from those calculated by other firms due to differences in methodology and available data.

Consensus Rating

Sell
5
Hold
15
Buy
0

Based on 20 Wall Street analysts who have issued ratings for Hershey in the last 12 months, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce." Out of the 20 analysts, 5 have given a sell rating, and 15 have given a hold rating for HSY.

Consensus Price Target

$158.84
-2.57% Downside
According to the 20 analysts' twelve-month price targets for Hershey, the average price target is $158.84. The highest price target for HSY is $185.00, while the lowest price target for HSY is $120.00. The average price target represents a forecasted downside of -2.57% from the current price of $163.04.
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HSY Analyst Ratings Over Time

TypeCurrent Forecast
7/15/24 to 7/15/25
1 Month Ago
6/15/24 to 6/15/25
3 Months Ago
4/16/24 to 4/16/25
1 Year Ago
7/16/23 to 7/15/24
Strong Buy
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
Buy
0 Buy rating(s)
0 Buy rating(s)
0 Buy rating(s)
4 Buy rating(s)
Hold
15 Hold rating(s)
15 Hold rating(s)
16 Hold rating(s)
13 Hold rating(s)
Sell
5 Sell rating(s)
5 Sell rating(s)
5 Sell rating(s)
1 Sell rating(s)
Consensus Price Target$158.84$158.84$163.05$209.67
Forecasted Upside-2.57% Downside-6.04% Downside-0.83% Downside10.98% Upside
Consensus Rating
Reduce
Reduce
Reduce
Hold

HSY Analyst Recommendations By Month

The chart below shows how a company's ratings by analysts have changed over time. Each bar represents the previous year of ratings for that month. Within each bar, the sell ratings are shown in red, the hold ratings are shown in yellow, the buy ratings are shown in green, and the strong buy ratings are shown in dark green.
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HSY Price Targets by Month

The chart below shows how a company's share price and consensus price target have changed over time. The dark blue line represents the company's actual price. The lighter blue line represents the stock's consensus price target. The even lighter blue range in the background of the two lines represents the low price target and the high price target for each stock.
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Hershey Stock vs. The Competition

TypeHersheyConsumer Staples CompaniesS&P 500
Consensus Rating Score
1.75
2.54
2.53
Consensus RatingReduceModerate BuyModerate Buy
Predicted Upside-3.67% Downside58.03% Upside10.67% Upside
News Sentiment Rating
Positive News

See Recent HSY News
Positive News
Positive News
DateBrokerageAnalyst NameActionRatingPrice TargetUpside/Downside on Report DateDetails
5/28/2025Mizuho
3 of 5 stars
John Baumgartner
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Lower TargetNeutral ➝ Neutral$167.00 ➝ $155.00-2.07%
5/5/2025Barclays
3 of 5 stars
Andrew Lazar
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Boost TargetEqual Weight ➝ Equal Weight$160.00 ➝ $165.00-0.08%
5/5/2025DA Davidson
2 of 5 stars
Brian Holland
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Boost TargetNeutral ➝ Neutral$162.00 ➝ $163.00-1.53%
5/2/2025UBS Group
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Peter Grom
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Lower TargetNeutral ➝ Neutral$175.00 ➝ $170.00+4.23%
5/2/2025Royal Bank Of Canada
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Nik Modi
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Lower TargetSector Perform ➝ Sector Perform$178.00 ➝ $175.00+7.50%
5/2/2025Sanford C. Bernstein
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 Boost TargetMarket Perform$147.00 ➝ $155.00-4.89%
4/17/2025Morgan Stanley
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Megan Alexander
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Lower TargetEqual Weight ➝ Equal Weight$183.00 ➝ $177.00+7.45%
4/15/2025Citigroup
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T. Palmer
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Lower TargetNeutral ➝ Neutral$173.00 ➝ $165.00-3.18%
3/14/2025Wells Fargo & Company
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C. Carey
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Boost TargetUnderweight ➝ Underweight$125.00 ➝ $132.00-23.63%
2/7/2025Stifel Nicolaus
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Matthew Smith
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Lower TargetHold ➝ Hold$170.00 ➝ $160.00+3.27%
2/5/2025Bernstein Bank
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 Lower TargetMarket Perform ➝ Market Perform$177.00 ➝ $146.00+0.57%
1/31/2025Piper Sandler
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Michael Lavery
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DowngradeNeutral ➝ Underweight$153.00 ➝ $120.00-21.05%
1/23/2025Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft
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Steve Powers
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Lower TargetHold ➝ Hold$184.00 ➝ $148.00-2.10%
1/21/2025Jefferies Financial Group
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Rob Dickerson
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Lower TargetUnderperform ➝ Underperform$150.00 ➝ $134.00-12.83%
1/16/2025JPMorgan Chase & Co.
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Ken Goldman
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Lower TargetNeutral ➝ Neutral$171.00 ➝ $151.00-0.49%
1/8/2025TD Cowen
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 Lower TargetHold ➝ Hold$190.00 ➝ $172.00+7.11%
12/12/2024Bank of America
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 Reiterated RatingNeutral$180.00+1.61%
10/22/2024Redburn Atlantic
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B. Zhu
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Initiated CoverageSell$165.00-10.70%
8/14/2024Argus
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T. Conrad
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DowngradeBuy ➝ Hold
8/12/2024The Goldman Sachs Group
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 Initiated CoverageSell$185.00-8.19%
4/19/2024Edward Jones
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 Reiterated RatingBuy ➝ Hold
3/26/2024BNP Paribas
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 DowngradeOutperform ➝ Neutral$208.00+8.19%
10/13/2023Stephens
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 Initiated CoverageOverweight$240.00+27.90%
9/22/2023HSBC
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 Initiated CoverageBuy$248.00+19.17%

Analyst ratings data on MarketBeat is provided by Benzinga and other data providers. This page was last refreshed on Tuesday at 02:12 PM ET.


Should I Buy Hershey Stock? HSY Pros and Cons Explained

These pros and cons were generated based on recent news and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate insights. They were last updated on Wednesday, July 9, 2025. Please send any questions or comments about these Hershey pros and cons to contact@marketbeat.com.

Hershey
Bull Case

green Wall Street bull icon

Here are some ways that investors could benefit from investing in The Hershey Company:

  • The current stock price is around $175, which may present a buying opportunity for investors looking for stable growth in the confectionery sector.
  • The Hershey Company reported a strong earnings per share (EPS) of $2.09, exceeding analysts' expectations, indicating robust financial performance.
  • The company has a solid return on equity of 38.70%, suggesting effective management and profitability relative to shareholder equity.
  • With a quarterly dividend of $1.37, translating to an annualized dividend yield of 3.38%, investors can benefit from regular income in addition to potential capital appreciation.
  • The Hershey Company has a diverse product range, including both confectionery and pantry items, which can help mitigate risks associated with market fluctuations.

Hershey
Bear Case

red Wall Street bear icon

Investors should be bearish about investing in The Hershey Company for these reasons:

  • The company's quarterly revenue was down approximately 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year, indicating potential challenges in maintaining sales growth.
  • Insider selling activity, with a total of 54,107 shares sold recently, may raise concerns about the confidence of executives in the company's future performance.
  • The debt-to-equity ratio stands at 1.11, which suggests that the company has a relatively high level of debt compared to its equity, potentially increasing financial risk.
  • The payout ratio of 67.57% indicates that a significant portion of earnings is being distributed as dividends, which may limit funds available for reinvestment in growth opportunities.
  • With only 0.28% of the stock currently owned by insiders, there may be a lack of alignment between management and shareholder interests, which could affect decision-making.

HSY Forecast - Frequently Asked Questions

According to the research reports of 20 Wall Street equities research analysts, the average twelve-month stock price forecast for Hershey is $158.84, with a high forecast of $185.00 and a low forecast of $120.00.

20 Wall Street equities research analysts have issued "buy," "hold," and "sell" ratings for Hershey in the last twelve months. There are currently 5 sell ratings and 15 hold ratings for the stock. The consensus among Wall Street equities research analysts is that investors should "reduce" HSY shares.

According to analysts, Hershey's stock has a predicted downside of -2.57% based on their 12-month stock forecasts.

Hershey has been rated by research analysts at Barclays, DA Davidson, Mizuho, Morgan Stanley, Royal Bank Of Canada, Sanford C. Bernstein, and UBS Group in the past 90 days.

Analysts like Hershey less than other "consumer staples" companies. The consensus rating for Hershey is Reduce while the average consensus rating for "consumer staples" companies is Moderate Buy. Learn more on how HSY compares to other companies.


This page (NYSE:HSY) was last updated on 7/15/2025 by MarketBeat.com Staff
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