Does Hershey's Q2 Beat and Executive Changes Signal a Shift in Long-Term Strategy for HSY?

• The Hershey Company recently announced second-quarter 2025 results with net sales rising by 26% year over year, beating analyst expectations, alongside a series of board and executive leadership changes, including Michele G. Buck's retirement as Chairman and the appointment of Huong Maria T. Kraus as her successor.
• While Hershey's improved sales and earnings topped estimates, higher input and advertising costs compressed margins, and management indicated that adjusted earnings per share may decline for the full year despite ongoing sales growth.
• We'll examine how Hershey's strong sales results and leadership transition may influence its longer-term investment outlook and risk profile.

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Hershey Investment Narrative Recap

To be a Hershey shareholder, you need to believe in the company’s ability to deliver consistent sales growth, maintain profitability despite margin pressures, and adapt to evolving consumer trends. The strong Q2 2025 results and recent board changes are unlikely to directly shift the short-term catalyst, pricing and cost management remain front and center, while elevated input costs and weaker consumer demand represent the most immediate risks.

The appointment of Huong Maria T. Kraus as Chairman stands out, especially as Hershey focuses on governance and financial expertise during a period of earnings pressure. Her background in managing both finance and corporate development might help with oversight as Hershey continues to manage cost headwinds and implement pricing strategies that support revenue growth.

However, before drawing conclusions, investors should be aware that higher cocoa prices are still weighing on gross margins and...

Read the full narrative on Hershey (it's free!)

Hershey's outlook anticipates $12.2 billion in revenue and $1.8 billion in earnings by 2028. This reflects a 4.3% annual revenue growth and a $0.2 billion increase in earnings from the current $1.6 billion.

Uncover how Hershey's forecasts yield a $184.64 fair value, in line with its current price.

Exploring Other Perspectives

Simply Wall St Community members have set fair value estimates for Hershey from US$137.71 to US$185, drawn from 11 individual analyses. With ongoing margin pressures and expected declines in earnings per share, each perspective brings a different view of Hershey’s outlook for profitability and resilience, take a closer look at their reasoning.

Explore 11 other fair value estimates on Hershey - why the stock might be worth 25% less than the current price!

Build Your Own Hershey Narrative

Disagree with existing narratives? Create your own in under 3 minutes - extraordinary investment returns rarely come from following the herd.

• A great starting point for your Hershey research is our analysis highlighting 2 key rewards and 1 important warning sign that could impact your investment decision.
• Our free Hershey research report provides a comprehensive fundamental analysis summarized in a single visual - the Snowflake - making it easy to evaluate Hershey's overall financial health at a glance.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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