Evercore ISI Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Stock Price

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its price target lowered by Evercore ISI from $220.00 to $215.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has an “in-line” rating on the stock. Evercore ISI’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 26.57% from the stock’s current price.

HSY has been the topic of several other reports. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Hershey from $175.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. DA Davidson lifted their target price on shares of Hershey from $171.00 to $188.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Hershey from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $170.00 to $222.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Hershey from $154.00 to $157.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $193.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Hershey has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $179.32.

Hershey Price Performance

Shares of Hershey stock opened at $169.86 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.53. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $186.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $175.97. Hershey has a twelve month low of $140.13 and a twelve month high of $208.03. The firm has a market cap of $34.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 0.26.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.24. Hershey had a net margin of 13.54% and a return on equity of 37.36%. The business had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.34 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.900-6.000 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Hershey will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.52, for a total value of $281,280.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 56,819 shares in the company, valued at $10,654,698.88. The trade was a 2.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hershey

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of HSY. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 1,537.5% during the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 131 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hershey during the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Hershey by 46.3% during the second quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 199 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.