Chocolate company Hershey (NYSE: HSY) reported revenue ahead of Wall Street’s expectations in Q2 CY2026, with sales up 6.6% year on year to $2.79 billion. Its non-GAAP profit of $1.90 per share was 33.1% above analysts’ consensus estimates.

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"We delivered a strong first half, with reported net sales up 8.7%, organic net sales up 5.8% and meaningful earnings recovery. We enter the second half with momentum, compelling growth plans, and increased investment behind our brands, merchandising, and innovation. With cost visibility and operating flexibility, we are well positioned to navigate dynamic markets and deliver on our full-year financial commitments," said Kirk Tanner, The Hershey Company President and Chief Executive Officer.

Company Overview

Best known for its milk chocolate bar and Hershey's Kisses, Hershey (NYSE: HSY) is an iconic company known for its chocolate products.

Revenue Growth

A company’s long-term sales performance is one signal of its overall quality. Any business can experience short-term success, but top-performing ones enjoy sustained growth for years.

With $12.16 billion in revenue over the past 12 months, Hershey is one of the larger consumer staples companies and benefits from a well-known brand that influences purchasing decisions. However, its scale is a double-edged sword because there are only so many big store chains to sell into, making it harder to find incremental growth. To expand meaningfully, Hershey likely needs to tweak its prices, innovate with new products, or enter new markets.

As you can see below, Hershey’s sales grew at a sluggish 3.9% compounded annual growth rate over the last three years, but to its credit, consumers bought more of its products.

This quarter, Hershey reported year-on-year revenue growth of 6.6%, and its $2.79 billion of revenue exceeded Wall Street’s estimates by 5.7%.

Looking ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 2% over the next 12 months, a slight deceleration versus the last three years. This projection doesn’t excite us and indicates its products will see some demand headwinds.

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Organic Revenue Growth

When analyzing revenue growth, we care most about organic revenue growth. This metric captures a business’s performance excluding one-time events such as mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures as well as foreign currency fluctuations.

Hershey has generated solid demand for its products over the last two years. On average, the company’s organic sales have grown by 5.6% year on year.

In the latest quarter, Hershey’s organic sales rose by 3.6% year on year. This growth was a deceleration from its historical levels, showing the business is still performing well but losing a bit of steam.

Key Takeaways from Hershey’s Q2 Results

We were excited that Hershey's organic revenue outperformed Wall Street’s estimates, leading to an EPS beat. Despite the beat, full-year EPS guidance was just in line with expectations. The market seemed to be hoping for more, and the stock traded down 1.7% to $180.78 immediately after reporting.

So do we think Hershey is an attractive buy at the current price? When making that decision, it’s important to consider its valuation, business qualities, as well as what has happened in the latest quarter. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here (it’s free).