The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) shares are trading lower on Thursday. The confectionery giant delivered a sweet quarter, but rising cost pressures left a bitter aftertaste for investors.
Strong brand momentum and snack demand weren’t enough to fully calm concerns around margins and pricing strain.
Quarterly Details
The company reported first-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $2.35, beating the analyst consensus estimate of $2.04.
Quarterly sales of $3.104 billion (an increase of 10.6% year over year) outpaced the Street view of $3.028 billion. Organic net sales, on a constant currency basis, increased 7.9%.
Hershey’s North America Confectionery segment net sales were $2.489 billion in the first quarter of 2026, an increase of 8.3% versus the same period last year.
Volume declined approximately 4 points, reflecting price elasticity …