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Hershey (HSY) Upgraded at Piper Sandler as Cocoa Pressure Eases

The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) is included among the 13 Best Consumer Staples Dividend Stocks to Invest in Now.

On January 7, Piper Sandler upgraded The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) to Overweight from Neutral and raised its price target to $213 from $193. The call reflects easing cocoa costs and the removal of cocoa tariffs, which the firm says give Hershey “significant flexibility” to reinvest in the business and grow earnings ahead of its long-term algorithm. Analysts believe Hershey is positioned to deliver sales and earnings growth above that algorithm in 2026.

Back in October, Hershey raised its full-year sales and profit outlook after reporting stronger-than-expected quarterly results. Demand held up well for higher-priced chocolates and snacks, giving management more confidence in the outlook. The company now expects 2025 net sales growth of about 3%, up from its earlier target of at least 2%. It also lifted the low end of its adjusted earnings forecast to $5.90 per share from $5.81.Sales benefited from an expanded lineup of healthier, zero-sugar products, along with solid momentum across chocolate, sweets, and mints. In North America, Salty Snacks volumes rose 11% year over year, driven by brands like SkinnyPop and Dot’s Pretzels. Prices in that category fell 1% during the quarter, which helped support volume growth.

The picture looked different in the core North America Confectionery. Volumes slipped 1%, while prices rose 7%, reflecting a more price-driven approach in that part of the business.

The Hershey Company (NYSE:HSY) operates as a snacks company with three main segments: North America Confectionery, North America Salty Snacks, and International.

While we acknowledge the potential of HSY as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than HSY and that has a 100x upside potential, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: 12 Best Dow Stocks to Buy in 2026 and 14 Best Dividend Growth Stocks to Buy and Hold in 2026

Disclosure: None.

The $250 Trillion AI Hype is Real. A few years from now, you’ll probably wish you’d bought this stock.

When Jeff Bezos said that one breakthrough technology would shape Amazon’s destiny, even Wall Street’s biggest analysts were caught off guard.

Fast forward a year and Amazon’s new CEO Andy Jassy described generative AI as a “once-in-a-lifetime” technology that is already being used across Amazon to reinvent customer experiences.

At the 8th Future Investment Initiative conference, Elon Musk predicted that by 2040 there would be at least 10 billion humanoid robots, with each priced between $20,000 and $25,000.

Do the math. According to Musk, this technology could be worth $250 trillion by 2040.

Put another way, that’s roughly equal to:

  • 175 Teslas
  • 107 Amazons
  • 140 Metas
  • 84 Googles
  • 65 Microsofts
  • And 55 Nvidias

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  • Bill Gates sees artificial intelligence as the “biggest technological advance in my lifetime,” more transformative than the internet or personal computer, capable of improving healthcare, education, and addressing climate change.
  • Larry Ellison — through Oracle, is spending billions on Nvidia chips and partnering with Cohere to embed generative AI across Oracle’s cloud and apps.
  • Warren Buffett — not known for tech hype — says this breakthrough could have a ‘hugely beneficial social impact.

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