How to buy The Hershey Company stock | $178.48

The Hershey Company (HSY) is a leading confectioners business based in the US. It opened the day at $179.93 after a previous close of $179.85. During the day the price has varied from a low of $178.04 to a high of $179.80. The latest price was $178.48 (25 minute delay). The Hershey Company is listed on the NYSE and employs 15,200 staff. All prices are listed in US Dollars.

The Hershey Company stock price (NYSE: HSY)

Use our graph to track the performance of HSY stocks over time.

The Hershey Company shares at a glance

• Live prices
• Key figures

Information last updated 2021-08-04.

Open	$179.93
High	$179.80
Low	$178.04
Close	$178.48
Previous close	$179.85
Change	$-1.37
Change %	-0.7617%
Volume	354,709

Information last updated 2021-07-29.

52-week range	$131.96 - $182.24
50-day moving average	$175.52
200-day moving average	$162.39
Wall St. target price	$177.44
PE ratio	26.5655
Dividend yield	$3.185 (1.8%)
Earnings per share (TTM)	$6.72

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Is it a good time to buy The Hershey Company stock?

The technical analysis gauge below displays real-time ratings for the timeframes you select. This is not a recommendation, however. It represents a technical analysis based on the most popular technical indicators: Moving Averages, Oscillators and Pivots. Finder might not concur and takes no responsibility.

Technical Analysis of The Hershey Company by TradingView

This chart is not advice or a guarantee of success. Rather, it gauges the real-time recommendations of three popular technical indicators: moving averages, oscillators and pivots. Finder is not responsible for how your stock performs.

The Hershey Company price performance over time

Historical closes compared with the close of $178.48 from 2021-06-04

1 week (2021-07-24)	N/A
1 month (2021-07-02)	2.57%
3 months (2021-05-04)	6.93%
6 months (2021-01-31)	N/A

1 year (2020-07-31)	N/A
2 years (2019-07-31)	N/A
3 years (2018-07-31)	N/A
5 years (2016-07-31)	N/A

Is The Hershey Company under- or over-valued?

Valuing The Hershey Company stock is incredibly difficult, and any metric has to be viewed as part of a bigger picture of The Hershey Company's overall performance. However, analysts commonly use some key metrics to help gauge the value of a stock.

The Hershey Company's P/E ratio

The Hershey Company's current share price divided by its per-share earnings (EPS) over a 12-month period gives a "trailing price/earnings ratio" of roughly 27x. In other words, The Hershey Company shares trade at around 27x recent earnings.

That's comparable to, say, the trailing 12-month P/E ratio for the NASDAQ 100 at the end of 2019 (27.29).

The Hershey Company's PEG ratio

The Hershey Company's "price/earnings-to-growth ratio" can be calculated by dividing its P/E ratio by its growth – to give 4.8808. A low ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer better value, while a higher ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer worse value.

The PEG ratio provides a broader view than just the P/E ratio, as it gives more insight into The Hershey Company's future profitability. By accounting for growth, it could also help you if you're comparing the share prices of multiple high-growth companies.

The Hershey Company's EBITDA

The Hershey Company's EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) is $2.3 billion.

The EBITDA is a measure of a The Hershey Company's overall financial performance and is widely used to measure a its profitability.

The Hershey Company financials

Revenue TTM	$8.4 billion
Operating margin TTM	23.35%
Gross profit TTM	$3.7 billion
Return on assets TTM	13.71%
Return on equity TTM	71.26%
Profit margin	16.69%
Book value	$10.90
Market capitalisation	$37 billion

TTM: trailing 12 months

Shorting The Hershey Company shares

There are currently 1.7 million The Hershey Company shares held short by investors – that's known as The Hershey Company's "short interest". This figure is 9.8% down from 1.9 million last month.

There are a few different ways that this level of interest in shorting The Hershey Company shares can be evaluated.

The Hershey Company's "short interest ratio" (SIR)

The Hershey Company's "short interest ratio" (SIR) is the quantity of The Hershey Company shares currently shorted divided by the average quantity of The Hershey Company shares traded daily (recently around 920052.74725275). The Hershey Company's SIR currently stands at 1.82. In other words for every 100,000 The Hershey Company shares traded daily on the market, roughly 1820 shares are currently held short.

However The Hershey Company's short interest can also be evaluated against the total number of The Hershey Company shares, or, against the total number of tradable The Hershey Company shares (the shares that aren't held by "insiders" or major long-term shareholders – also known as the "float"). In this case The Hershey Company's short interest could be expressed as 0.01% of the outstanding shares (for every 100,000 The Hershey Company shares in existence, roughly 10 shares are currently held short) or 0.0115% of the tradable shares (for every 100,000 tradable The Hershey Company shares, roughly 12 shares are currently held short).

Such a low SIR usually points to an optimistic outlook for the share price, with fewer people currently willing to bet against The Hershey Company.

Find out more about how you can short The Hershey Company stock.

The Hershey Company's environmental, social and governance track record

Environmental, social and governance (known as ESG) criteria are a set of three factors used to measure the sustainability and social impact of companies like The Hershey Company.

When it comes to ESG scores, lower is better, and lower scores are generally associated with lower risk for would-be investors.

The Hershey Company's total ESG risk score

Total ESG risk: 27.77

Socially conscious investors use ESG scores to screen how an investment aligns with their worldview, and The Hershey Company's overall score of 27.77 (as at 12/31/2018) is nothing to write home about – landing it in it in the 45th percentile of companies rated in the same sector.

ESG scores are increasingly used to estimate the level of risk a company like The Hershey Company is exposed to within the areas of "environmental" (carbon footprint, resource use etc.), "social" (health and safety, human rights etc.), and "governance" (anti-corruption, tax transparency etc.).

The Hershey Company's environmental score

Environmental score: 12.73/100

The Hershey Company's environmental score of 12.73 puts it squarely in the 6th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that The Hershey Company is a leader in its sector terms of its environmental impact, and exposed to a lower level of risk.

The Hershey Company's social score

Social score: 14.75/100

The Hershey Company's social score of 14.75 puts it squarely in the 6th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that The Hershey Company is a leader in its sector when it comes to taking good care of its workforce and the communities it impacts.

The Hershey Company's governance score

Governance score: 7.29/100

The Hershey Company's governance score puts it squarely in the 6th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. That could suggest that The Hershey Company is a leader in its sector when it comes to responsible management and strategy, and exposed to a lower level of risk.

The Hershey Company's controversy score

Controversy score: 3/5

ESG scores also evaluate any incidences of controversy that a company has been involved in. The Hershey Company scored a 3 out of 5 for controversy – a middle-of-the-table result reflecting that The Hershey Company hasn't always managed to keep its nose clean.

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) summary

The Hershey Company was last rated for ESG on: 2019-01-01.

Total ESG score	27.77
Total ESG percentile	44.76
Environmental score	12.73
Environmental score percentile	6
Social score	14.75
Social score percentile	6
Governance score	7.29
Governance score percentile	6
Level of controversy	3

The Hershey Company share dividends

Dividend payout ratio: 50.35% of net profits

Recently The Hershey Company has paid out, on average, around 50.35% of net profits as dividends. That has enabled analysts to estimate a "forward annual dividend yield" of 1.79% of the current stock value. This means that over a year, based on recent payouts (which are sadly no guarantee of future payouts), The Hershey Company shareholders could enjoy a 1.79% return on their shares, in the form of dividend payments. In The Hershey Company's case, that would currently equate to about $3.185 per share.

The Hershey Company's payout ratio would broadly be considered high, and as such this stock could appeal to those looking to generate an income. Bear in mind however that companies should normally also look to re-invest a decent amount of net profits to ensure future growth.

The Hershey Company's most recent dividend payout was on 14 June 2021. The latest dividend was paid out to all shareholders who bought their shares by 19 May 2021 (the "ex-dividend date").

Have The Hershey Company's shares ever split?

The Hershey Company's shares were split on a 2:1 basis on 15 June 2004. So if you had owned 1 share the day before before the split, the next day you'd have owned 2 shares. This wouldn't directly have changed the overall worth of your The Hershey Company shares – just the quantity. However, indirectly, the new 50% lower share price could have impacted the market appetite for The Hershey Company shares which in turn could have impacted The Hershey Company's share price.

The Hershey Company share price volatility

Over the last 12 months, The Hershey Company's shares have ranged in value from as little as $131.9578 up to $182.24. A popular way to gauge a stock's volatility is its "beta".

Beta is a measure of a share's volatility in relation to the market. The market (NYSE average) beta is 1, while The Hershey Company's is 0.3672. This would suggest that The Hershey Company's shares are less volatile than average (for this exchange).

The Hershey Company overview

The Hershey Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells confectionery products and pantry items. The company operates in two segments, North America; and International and Other. It offers chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery products; gum and mint refreshment products comprising mints, chewing gums, and bubble gums; pantry items, such as baking ingredients, toppings, beverages, and sundae syrups; and snack items, including spreads, meat snacks, bars and snack bites, mixes, popcorn and protein bars, and cookies. The company provides its products primarily under the Hershey's, Reese's, Kisses, Jolly Rancher, Almond Joy, Brookside, barkTHINS, Cadbury, Good & Plenty, Heath, Kit Kat, Lancaster, Payday, Rolo, Twizzlers, Whoppers, York, Ice Breakers, Breathsavers, Bubble Yum, SkinnyPop, Pirate's Booty, Oatmega, Paqui, and ONE Bar brands, as well as under the Pelon Pelo Rico, IO-IO, and Sofit brands. It markets and sells its products to wholesale distributors, chain grocery stores, mass merchandisers, chain drug stores, vending companies, wholesale clubs, convenience stores, dollar stores, concessionaires, and department stores. The company was founded in 1894 and is headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. .

Frequently asked questions

What percentage of The Hershey Company is owned by insiders or institutions?
Currently 0.21% of The Hershey Company shares are held by insiders and 119.102% by institutions. How many people work for The Hershey Company?
Latest data suggests 15,200 work at The Hershey Company. When does the fiscal year end for The Hershey Company?
The Hershey Company's fiscal year ends in December. Where is The Hershey Company based?
The Hershey Company's address is: 19 East Chocolate Avenue, Hershey, PA, United States, 17033 What is The Hershey Company's ISIN number?
The Hershey Company's international securities identification number is: US4278661081 What is The Hershey Company's CUSIP number?
The Hershey Company's Committee on Uniform Securities Identification Procedures number is: 427866108