Hershey (HSY) Misses Q2 Earnings and Revenue Estimates

Core Viewpoint - Hershey's quarterly earnings fell short of expectations, indicating potential challenges ahead for the company [1][4] Financial Performance - Hershey reported earnings of $1.27 per share, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.44 per share, and down from $2.01 per share a year ago, representing an earnings surprise of -11.81% [1] - The company's revenues for the quarter were $2.07 billion, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 9.71%, and down from $2.49 billion year-over-year [1] - Over the last four quarters, Hershey has surpassed consensus EPS estimates three times and topped revenue estimates twice [1] Market Performance - Hershey shares have increased by approximately 5.9% since the beginning of the year, compared to a 15.8% gain for the S&P 500 [2] Future Outlook - The company's earnings outlook will be influenced by management's commentary during the earnings call, and revisions in earnings estimates are crucial for stock movement [3][4] - Current consensus EPS estimate for the upcoming quarter is $2.77 on revenues of $3.03 billion, and for the current fiscal year, it is $9.56 on revenues of $11.39 billion [4] Industry Context - The Food - Confectionery industry, to which Hershey belongs, is currently ranked in the top 41% of over 250 Zacks industries, indicating a favorable industry outlook [5] - The performance of Hershey's stock may also be affected by the overall industry trends and the performance of other companies in the consumer staples sector, such as Hormel Foods [5][6]