Credit Suisse Loses Appetite For Hershey, Downgrades To Neutral
Hershey Co (NYSE: HSY)'s earnings report sent the stock tumbling throughout Thursday's session and prompted at least one analyst to no longer hold a bullish stance.
The Analyst
Credit Suisse's Robert Moskow downgraded Hershey's stock from Outperform to Neutral with a price target lowered from $129 to $115.
The Thesis
Hershey's stock warrants a premium valuation versus the food group, but post-earnings the stock now merits a more narrow premium, Moskow said in a note. Prior to Thursday, the analyst's price target implied a 14 percent premium historically, but now an 11 percent premium to the food group is justified amid multiple concerning data points seen in the report.
For example, Hershey's organic sales growth slipped to 0.4 percent in 2017, which marks another year of weak growth, the analyst said. Looking forward to 2018, there are few signs of an acceleration in sales as the pipeline of new products "does not sound exciting enough." Perhaps more important, the entire confectionery category will remain under heavy competitive pressure due to rising demand for healthier snack options.
While Hershey is looking to diversify its business outside of sugar snacks through acquisitions, like the recently acquired maker of SkinnyPop popcorn, Moskow said. But the company also has a poor track record of integrating its acquisitions.
Price Action
Shares of Hershey were trading higher by 1 percent at $102.77 Friday.
Cocoa Costs Can't Sweeten Hershey: Morgan Stanley Downgrades To Sell
Hershey Looks Sweeter On M&A, Possible Tax Cut, Berenberg Says
Latest Ratings for HSY
Date | Firm | Action | From | To |
---|---|---|---|---|
Feb 2021 | RBC Capital | Upgrades | Sector Perform | Outperform |
Feb 2021 | Credit Suisse | Maintains | Outperform | |
Jan 2021 | B of A Securities | Upgrades | Neutral | Buy |
View More Analyst Ratings for HSY
View the Latest Analyst Ratings
© 2021 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Posted-In: Credit Suisse Food Companies Robert MoskowAnalyst Color Downgrades Price Target Top Stories Analyst Ratings Best of Benzinga