The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) just released its quarterly report and things are looking bullish. It was overall a positive result, with revenues beating expectations by 4.5% to hit US$3.3b. Hershey also reported a statutory profit of US$3.89, which was an impressive 43% above what the analysts had forecast. The analysts typically update their forecasts at each earnings report, and we can judge from their estimates whether their view of the company has changed or if there are any new concerns to be aware of. We thought readers would find it interesting to see the analysts latest (statutory) post-earnings forecasts for next year.

Taking into account the latest results, Hershey's 21 analysts currently expect revenues in 2024 to be US$11.5b, approximately in line with the last 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are forecast to shrink 4.7% to US$9.77 in the same period. In the lead-up to this report, the analysts had been modelling revenues of US$11.5b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$9.41 in 2024. The analysts seems to have become more bullish on the business, judging by their new earnings per share estimates.

There's been no major changes to the consensus price target of US$206, suggesting that the improved earnings per share outlook is not enough to have a long-term positive impact on the stock's valuation. It could also be instructive to look at the range of analyst estimates, to evaluate how different the outlier opinions are from the mean. Currently, the most bullish analyst values Hershey at US$239 per share, while the most bearish prices it at US$170. Analysts definitely have varying views on the business, but the spread of estimates is not wide enough in our view to suggest that extreme outcomes could await Hershey shareholders.

Of course, another way to look at these forecasts is to place them into context against the industry itself. We would highlight that Hershey's revenue growth is expected to slow, with the forecast 0.3% annualised growth rate until the end of 2024 being well below the historical 8.8% p.a. growth over the last five years. By way of comparison, the other companies in this industry with analyst coverage are forecast to grow their revenue at 2.9% per year. So it's pretty clear that, while revenue growth is expected to slow down, the wider industry is also expected to grow faster than Hershey.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing here is that the analysts upgraded their earnings per share estimates, suggesting that there has been a clear increase in optimism towards Hershey following these results. Fortunately, the analysts also reconfirmed their revenue estimates, suggesting that it's tracking in line with expectations. Although our data does suggest that Hershey's revenue is expected to perform worse than the wider industry. There was no real change to the consensus price target, suggesting that the intrinsic value of the business has not undergone any major changes with the latest estimates.

Keeping that in mind, we still think that the longer term trajectory of the business is much more important for investors to consider. We have forecasts for Hershey going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here.

That said, it's still necessary to consider the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 1 warning sign with Hershey , and understanding this should be part of your investment process.

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