Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Price Target Raised to $260.00

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its target price increased by Stephens from $200.00 to $260.00 in a research note released on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Hershey from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Piper Sandler set a $213.00 target price on Hershey and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. DA Davidson set a $243.00 price target on Hershey in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Hershey from $185.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $220.30.

Hershey Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of HSY opened at $222.06 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $45.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.17, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.18. Hershey has a 12 month low of $150.04 and a 12 month high of $234.87. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $194.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $187.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.31. The firm had revenue of $3.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 27.90% and a net margin of 7.55%.The business’s revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.69 EPS. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.520 EPS. Analysts predict that Hershey will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be issued a $1.452 dividend. This represents a $5.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. This is an increase from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.37. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 126.27%.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other news, CEO Kirk Tanner purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $185.46 per share, with a total value of $370,920.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 47,860 shares in the company, valued at $8,876,115.60. The trade was a 4.36% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.67, for a total transaction of $298,005.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 52,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,394,215.73. The trade was a 2.79% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 6,000 shares of company stock worth $1,119,450 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hershey

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Hershey by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,067,235 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,469,855,000 after acquiring an additional 191,671 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 9,106,431 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,657,189,000 after purchasing an additional 169,660 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Hershey by 1.8% during the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Hershey by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,315,653 shares of the company’s stock valued at $967,343,000 after buying an additional 124,464 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Hershey by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,831,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $876,434,000 after buying an additional 104,024 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Company Profile

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.