Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Price Target Lowered to $204.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) had its target price lowered by research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $211.00 to $204.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target would indicate a potential upside of 12.11% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen raised Hershey from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Hershey from $240.00 to $225.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hershey in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Hershey from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. 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, Hershey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $222.89.

Hershey Stock Down 2.0%

HSY stock traded down $3.78 during trading on Friday, hitting $181.96. 945,866 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,000,546. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.93, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.18. Hershey has a 1 year low of $150.04 and a 1 year high of $239.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $210.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $196.68.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.31. Hershey had a return on equity of 27.90% and a net margin of 7.55%.The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.09 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Hershey will post 8.4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.10, for a total transaction of $291,150.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 57,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,198,599.50. The trade was a 2.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Jason Reiman sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.07, for a total value of $452,140.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 41,036 shares in the company, valued at $9,277,008.52. This represents a 4.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 10,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,189,090 over the last ninety days. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hershey

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Hershey by 8.2% during the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 8,414 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,749,000 after buying an additional 640 shares during the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey by 9.7% in the 1st quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 2,583 shares of the company’s stock valued at $537,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. KLCM Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hershey in the first quarter worth $222,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in shares of Hershey by 12.9% in the first quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 330,842 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,751,000 after acquiring an additional 37,719 shares during the period. Finally, Waterfront Wealth Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Hershey by 5.0% during the first quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 5,829 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,212,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.96% of the company’s stock.

Hershey News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Hershey this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat on sales and EPS — Hershey reported Q1 adjusted EPS of $2.35 (vs. ~$2.04 consensus) and revenue of $3.10B, driven by pricing and acquisitions; top‑line grew ~10.7% y/y. This confirms pricing power and revenue resilience. Earnings Release
• Positive Sentiment: GLP‑1 trend boosting mints/gum — Management noted higher demand for mints and gum tied to GLP‑1 weight‑loss drugs (“Ozempic breath”); Ice Breakers sales rose ~8% in Q1, a potential pocket of growth offsetting softer chocolate volumes. CNBC Article
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend maintained/increased cash return — Hershey declared the quarterly dividend of $1.452 per share (annualized yield ~3.1%), supporting income investors and reflecting steady free cash flow. Dividend PR
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst stance largely cautious but mixed — BTIG maintained a Hold/neutral rating, signaling no change in conviction despite the beat; the market is parsing near‑term demand uncertainty versus the earnings beat. TipRanks/BTIG
• Negative Sentiment: Margin pressure and cost headwinds — Management and multiple reports highlighted rising input, freight and tariff costs that compressed margins despite pricing; investors are focused on margin recovery and volume softness. Benzinga Article
• Negative Sentiment: Price target cut by Wells Fargo — Wells Fargo lowered its Hershey price target from $220 to $200 and moved to an Equal Weight rating, signaling more muted upside expectations and adding downward pressure on the stock. Benzinga (Wells Fargo)
• Neutral Sentiment: Guidance and outlook — Management reaffirmed its 2026 sales and earnings outlook, but commentary around near‑term demand elasticity and softer outlook commentary contributed to investor caution. Earnings Release

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.