DA Davidson Has Pessimistic View of Hershey FY2025 Earnings

The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) – Equities researchers at DA Davidson cut their FY2025 EPS estimates for Hershey in a report released on Monday, February 3rd. DA Davidson analyst B. Holland now anticipates that the company will post earnings of $6.88 per share for the year, down from their prior estimate of $8.02. The consensus estimate for Hershey’s current full-year earnings is $9.06 per share.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on HSY. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $190.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $178.00 price objective on shares of Hershey in a research report on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $184.00 to $148.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $169.79.

Hershey Stock Performance

NYSE:HSY opened at $144.78 on Wednesday. Hershey has a 1 year low of $143.95 and a 1 year high of $211.92. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $166.37 and a 200-day moving average of $181.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.30 and a beta of 0.38.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hershey

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HSY. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Hershey by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,029,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,348,127,000 after buying an additional 386,670 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,387,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $841,476,000 after purchasing an additional 109,336 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,753,751 shares of the company’s stock valued at $717,606,000 after purchasing an additional 35,688 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 66.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 972,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,571,000 after purchasing an additional 389,404 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 964,748 shares of the company’s stock valued at $185,027,000 after purchasing an additional 29,507 shares during the period. 57.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Jennifer Mccalman sold 278 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $41,144.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $396,936. This represents a 9.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.79%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. Hershey’s payout ratio is presently 63.13%.

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.