Hershey Company (HSY) Q3 2026 Earnings
Adjusted EPS excludes derivative mark-to-market gains of $113.4 million pre-tax ($0.56/share), business realignment costs of $13.3 million ($0.07) and acquisition/integration costs of $36.4 million ($0.18). Q3 results include tariff refunds (about $0.22 per share referenced in the full-year adjusted EPS outlook).
How Did HSY Stock React to Q3 2026 Earnings?
Did HSY Beat Earnings? Q3 2026 Results
Yes. Hershey Company reported Q3 2026 earnings of $2.64 a share on Oct 29, 2026, beating the $2.11 consensus estimate by 24.9%. Revenue was $3.3B against a $3.3B estimate.
Hershey delivered a standout third quarter of fiscal 2026, posting adjusted EPS of $2.64 against a consensus estimate of $2.11, a beat of nearly 25% that extended the chocolate maker's winning streak to five consecutive quarters of topping Wall Street's earnings expectations. Revenue of $3.28 billion edged past the $3.25 billion consensus and grew 3.0% year over year, though the headline figure masked a more complicated picture beneath the surface: <a href="https://247wallst.com/investing/2026/10/25/why-hersheys-sneaky-volume-problem-could-spoil-its-q3-on-oct-29/">volume pressure across key segments</a> remained a persistent drag, with roughly 10 points of volume declines largely offsetting 11 points of net price realization. The profit surge was powered in part by tariff refunds, lower commodity costs and $113.4 million in pre-tax derivative mark-to-market gains, which together helped lift reported gross margin to 46.1% from 32.6% a year earlier. Looking ahead, Hershey raised its full-year adjusted EPS guidance to $8.58 to $8.74, reflecting 36% to 38.5% growth, while narrowing net sales growth to approximately 5%.
- Net price realization of about 11 points, partly offset by a roughly 10-point volume decline
- Productivity program savings, tariff refunds and lower net commodity costs lifted gross margin to 46.1% (adjusted 42.7%)
- Derivative mark-to-market gains of $113.4 million pre-tax boosted reported results
- LesserEvil acquisition contributed 2.1 points to total net sales growth and about 20 points to Salty Snacks growth
- North America Confectionery segment margin rose 1,400 basis points to 35.8%
- U.S. salty snacks retail takeaway, excluding LesserEvil, rose 4.0% with market share gains
- Advertising and related consumer marketing rose 17.1%, with double-digit increases in both North American segments
- Lower effective tax rate of 24.4%
“Our third-quarter results show steady progress on our 2026 priorities.”
Hershey Company CEO, on the earnings call
What Is Hershey Company's Outlook?
Hershey updated its 2026 outlook and excludes potential future tariff refunds from it. - **Net sales growth:** about 5% (prior 4.5% to 5%), including roughly a 200 basis point benefit from the LesserEvil acquisition and a slight foreign currency benefit. - **Organic net sales growth:** about 3% (prior 3% to 3.5%). - **Reported EPS:** growth of 84% to 90% ($8.00 to $8.26), versus prior guidance of 82% to 89%. - **Adjusted EPS:** growth of 36% to 38.5% ($8.58 to $8.74), versus prior guidance of 32.5% to 35%. This includes about $0.22 from tariff refunds received in Q3 and $0.03 in Q2. Other full-year expectations: - A reported and adjusted effective tax rate of about 25%. - Other expense of about $5 million to $10 million. - Interest expense of about $200 million. - Capital expenditures of about $450 million. - Advancing Agility & Automation Initiative savings of about $100 million.
HSY YoY Financials
| Metric | Q3 2026 | Q3 2025 | Year over year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $3.3B | $3.2B | +3.0% |
| Gross Profit | $1.5B | $1.0B | +50.4% |
| Operating Income | $817.7M | $410.0M | +99.4% |
| Net Income | $580.8M | $276.3M | +110.2% |
HSY Revenue by Segment
Figures from SEC filings and company reports. Not investment advice.