Hershey (NYSE:HSY) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.33 EPS

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) announced its earnings results on Friday. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.33, RTT News reports. The firm had revenue of $3.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. Hershey had a return on equity of 51.79% and a net margin of 16.67%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.96 EPS. Hershey updated its FY 2024 guidance to 9.590-9.590 EPS.

Hershey Trading Up 1.0 %

HSY stock traded up $2.04 during trading on Friday, hitting $197.92. The company had a trading volume of 3,396,043 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,711,441. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $191.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $190.72. The stock has a market cap of $40.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.87, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.33. Hershey has a 12 month low of $178.82 and a 12 month high of $275.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.77%. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.55%.

Insider Transactions at Hershey

In other Hershey news, CFO Steven E. Voskuil sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.83, for a total transaction of $278,745.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 38,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,196,824.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Hershey from $213.00 to $199.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Hershey from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Hershey from $200.00 to $179.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $213.00 price target on shares of Hershey in a report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Hershey from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $212.78.

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.