Hershey Company (The) $HSY Shares Purchased by Kentucky Retirement Systems

Kentucky Retirement Systems grew its stake in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 35.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,368 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,222 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Hershey were worth $2,571,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Hershey in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Hershey in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Reflection Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Manchester Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hershey by 123.0% during the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 165 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Key Hershey News

Here are the key news stories impacting Hershey this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Hershey reported second-quarter sales of $2.79 billion, up 6.6% year over year and above the $2.63 billion consensus estimate. Adjusted EPS of $1.90 exceeded expectations of approximately $1.43-$1.45 and rose sharply from $1.21 a year earlier. Hershey reports higher Q2 sales, earnings; tightens 2026 outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Higher prices, margin recovery and strength in Reese’s, Dot’s Pretzels and the LesserEvil acquisition helped offset softer consumption. North America Salty Snacks sales increased 22.9%, while North America Confectionery sales rose 4.2%. Hershey beats quarterly sales estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Management raised the lower end of its full-year outlook and narrowed 2026 guidance to approximately $12.2-$12.3 billion in revenue and $8.36-$8.52 in EPS, signaling confidence in the second-half recovery. Cocoa-cost deflation could also improve profitability in 2027. Hershey lifts bottom end of full-year growth outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Hershey maintained its quarterly common-stock dividend at $1.452 per share, payable September 15 to shareholders of record August 14. The dividend provides an annualized yield of roughly 3.3%, but the lack of an increase offers no new catalyst. Hershey Keeps Its Dividend Steady
• Negative Sentiment: Sales growth was driven primarily by a roughly 12% pricing increase, while volumes fell about 8%. Investors may view this mix as a warning that higher prices are weakening demand and may become harder to sustain. Hershey Q2 2026 earnings beat, raises annual outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Supply-chain challenges in salty snacks and ongoing exposure to volatile cocoa prices remain risks, while the company’s outlook excludes potential future tariff rebates. A recent CFO share sale was conducted under a prearranged 10b5-1 plan, making it a limited but potentially negative sentiment factor.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Hershey from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Hershey from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. TD Cowen raised shares of Hershey from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Mizuho cut their price target on Hershey from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $190.00 price target on Hershey in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $208.28.

Hershey Price Performance

HSY opened at $177.16 on Friday. Hershey Company has a 1 year low of $161.43 and a 1 year high of $239.48. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $179.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $196.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.94 billion, a PE ratio of 32.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.24.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.47. The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.63 billion. Hershey had a net margin of 9.12% and a return on equity of 28.98%. Hershey’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.21 earnings per share. Hershey has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.360-8.520 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 8.42 EPS for the current year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.452 per share. This represents a $5.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 108.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hershey

In related news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $255,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 53,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,043,150. This trade represents a 2.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.08% 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.