Mairs & Power Inc. Raises Stock Position in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Mairs & Power Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 71,293 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,278 shares during the quarter. Mairs & Power Inc.’s holdings in Hershey were worth $13,335,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Hershey during the second quarter worth $234,386,000. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Hershey by 240.0% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,262,671 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,183,000 after purchasing an additional 891,287 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in Hershey during the 2nd quarter worth $125,868,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Hershey by 121.2% during the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,104,299 shares of the company’s stock worth $206,559,000 after purchasing an additional 605,048 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP increased its holdings in Hershey by 44.7% during the 2nd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 1,232,595 shares of the company’s stock worth $204,549,000 after purchasing an additional 380,512 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HSY has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Hershey from $195.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $185.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $249.00 target price on shares of Hershey in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Hershey to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $222.68.

Hershey Stock Up 1.3%

HSY stock opened at $219.92 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market cap of $44.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.67, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.14. The company’s 50 day moving average is $211.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $193.70. Hershey Company has a twelve month low of $150.04 and a twelve month high of $239.48.

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

Hershey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were issued a $1.452 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. This is a positive change from Hershey’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.37. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 133.87%.

Key Stories Impacting Hershey

Here are the key news stories impacting Hershey this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks added HSY to its Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) growth-stocks list, increasing attention from growth-oriented investors and suggesting upside versus peers. Best Growth Stocks to Buy for March 17th
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its price target on HSY from $238 to $247 and moved to an Overweight rating — a direct catalyst for buy-side interest and a signal that expectations for revenue/margin tailwinds have improved. Price Target Raise Coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and financial press highlighted that Hershey outpaced the market in recent trading (shares were up vs. the prior session), citing its strong execution and positioning. This momentum reflects short-term buying interest. Why Hershey (HSY) Outpaced the Stock Market Today
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage lauds Hershey as among the strongest Q4 performers in the shelf-stable food group, reinforcing confidence in its recent results and FY26 guidance (management reiterated solid EPS outlook). Strongest Q4 Results from the Shelf-Stable Food Group
• Positive Sentiment: Hershey launched a unified portfolio strategy (sweet, salty, protein) aimed at simplifying go-to-market and cross-selling — a strategic move that can boost innovation leverage and margin over time. Hershey Begins First Day Under Unified Portfolio
• Positive Sentiment: Hershey joined major peers on the TogetherCocoa initiative (Lindt, Mars, Mondelez, Nestlé) — a reputational/ESG positive that can reduce regulatory and supply-chain risk exposure while supporting long-term cocoa sourcing stability. HSY Partners With Lindt, Mars, Mondelez, Nestlé on TogetherCocoa
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised Mondelez to Top Pick on expectations of cocoa deflation — a theme that could benefit all large confectioners (including Hershey) but also lifts a direct competitor, so the net competitive impact is ambiguous. Morgan Stanley Raises Mondelez to Top Pick
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports that Hershey will streamline its U.S. businesses were published; streamlining could lower costs (positive) but may include near-term disruption or charges (makes impact uncertain). Hershey to Streamline US Businesses

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.66, for a total transaction of $329,490.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 50,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,162,901.54. The trade was a 2.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Jason Reiman sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total transaction of $452,140.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 41,036 shares in the company, valued at $9,277,008.52. The trade was a 4.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 10,000 shares of company stock worth $2,153,645. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

About Hershey

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.