The Hershey CompanyHSY

Consumer Defensive
Neutral

ASignal's systematic analysis rates HSY as Neutral. The Hershey Company has a market cap of $34.54B, a P/E of 31.95, a 9.1% net margin, and 10.6% year-over-year revenue growth.

Reflects the latest available analysis · analyzed Jul 16, 2026

The case on HSY

Bull vs bear, surfaced by ASignal's framework agents from public market data. The precise verdict: ASignal Rank, confidence, and price targets - is in the app.

Bull case
  • Strong ROE of 23.23% indicating efficient use of equity
  • Operating cash flow of $2.35B supports financial stability
  • Free cash flow of $1.53B provides capital flexibility
  • Earnings growth of 93.6% YoY shows strong profitability improvement
  • Forward P/E of 17.22x suggests valuation improvement relative to current earnings
VS
Bear case
  • RSI at 35.2 indicates near-term bearish momentum
  • MACD histogram negative and trending downward
  • Price below SMA20, SMA50, and EMA20 signaling downtrend
  • High payout ratio of 103.58% raises sustainability concerns
  • Debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20x above ideal threshold of 0.5
  • Quick ratio of 0.61x indicates potential liquidity pressure

Key facts

Sector
Consumer Defensive
Market cap
$34.54B
P/E ratio
31.95
Gross margin
35.0%
Net margin
9.1%
Rev growth YoY
10.6%
Price (Jul 16, 2026)
$170.27

Peers

Clustered with HSY by analysis-profile similarity.

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See the full verdict on HSY

ASignal Rank (1-4), confidence score, Buffett / Ackman / Dalio grades, price targets, and the full reasoning behind the call.

How ASignal analyzes HSY

Most investors never get a second opinion, let alone several. ASignal runs HSY past a panel of specialized investor-framework agents, each calibrated on a distinct school of investing: Warren Buffett's value discipline, Bill Ackman's activist lens, and Ray Dalio's macro view. They don't just score in isolation, they argue: a dedicated Challenger agent pushes back on every conclusion until the panel settles on a reasoned consensus, weighing fundamentals, macro conditions, market sentiment, and price action together. The kind of cross-examined read that takes a research desk hours, ASignal delivers in under two minutes, refreshed every cycle.

The signal direction and the bull and bear case above are free. The precise read, ASignal Rank, framework grades, price targets, and full reasoning, stays with subscribers.

The Hershey Company (HSY) Stock Analysis - ASignal rates it Neutral