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HSY vs SYY
Which Stock Would AI Choose? The Hershey Company (HSY) vs. Sysco Corporation (SYY) Stock Comparison
Key Takeaways
- HSY shares have declined around 4-5% in recent weeks amid margin pressures from rising cocoa costs, despite launching a unified ONE Hershey operating model to streamline U.S. operations.
- SYY has faced steeper recent weakness, dropping about 9% over the past month, influenced by leadership transitions and valuation adjustments in food distribution.
- Year-to-date, HSY outperforms with +16% gains versus SYY's +11%, reflecting stronger consumer staples positioning for HSY.
- Valuation contrasts show HSY at a premium trailing P/E of 48x versus SYY's more attractive 22x, with both offering similar ~2.7% dividend yields.
- Lower beta for HSY (0.11) indicates greater stability compared to SYY (0.60), appealing to defensive investors.
- Tickeron's AI bots include consumer staples strategies trading both tickers, highlighting relative performance in current market conditions.
Introduction
This stock comparison examines HSY and SYY, two defensive players in consumer staples. The Hershey Company dominates confectionery and salty snacks, while Sysco Corporation leads in foodservice distribution to restaurants and institutions. Traders seeking relative performance insights and investors focused on stability in volatile markets will find value here. Amid shifting commodity costs and operational updates, analyzing recent momentum, valuations, and sector dynamics reveals trade-offs in growth potential, risk, and market positioning for informed decision-making in today's environment.
HSY Overview and Recent Performance
The Hershey Company manufactures and sells confectionery, salty snacks, and pantry items, operating through North America Confectionery, Salty Snacks, and International segments. Iconic brands like Hershey's, Reese's, and SkinnyPop drive its #1 U.S. confection and #2 snacking positions. Recent market activity shows HSY trading around $210, down approximately 4-5% over recent weeks and 5.2% in the past month, pressured by elevated cocoa costs impacting margins. Sentiment reflects mixed valuation signals, yet year-to-date gains exceed 16%, outperforming broader indices. Key developments include the ONE Hershey model launch, unifying sweet, salty, and protein portfolios for streamlined operations, deeper consumer ties, and faster innovation. Promotional pushes like Reese's March Madness campaigns bolster engagement amid these shifts.
SYY Overview and Recent Performance
Sysco Corporation is the global leader in foodservice distribution, supplying food products and non-food items to restaurants, healthcare, education, and hospitality via U.S., International, SYGMA, and Other segments. With over 340 facilities serving 730,000+ locations, it holds an 18% U.S. market share. SYY trades near $81, reflecting a sharper 9% monthly decline and weekly drops around 5%, amid broader share price weakness and analyst scrutiny. Year-to-date performance stands at +11%, supported by Q2 FY26 sales of $20.8B (up 3%) and gross margin expansion to 18.3% via inflation management. Influences include a CFO transition, international growth focus, and culinary events, tempering sentiment in a fragmented distribution landscape.
Trending AI Robots
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Head-to-Head Comparison
HSY and SYY both anchor consumer staples but diverge in models: Hershey's branded manufacturing emphasizes pricing power and innovation in snacking, versus Sysco's volume-driven distribution tied to food-away-from-home traffic. Growth drivers contrast Hershey's portfolio expansion (e.g., salty snacks) against Sysco's international and efficiency gains. Recent momentum favors neither decisively, with HSY showing YTD strength but monthly softness, while SYY lags amid leadership flux. Risk profiles highlight HSY's ultra-low beta (0.11) versus SYY (0.60), though commodity volatility hits Hershey harder. Valuations position SYY cheaper (22x P/E, 0.48 P/S) than HSY (48x P/E), with similar yields. Sentiment leans stable for both defensives, but Sysco's scale offers trade-offs in cyclical exposure.
Tickeron AI Verdict
Tickeron’s AI currently favors HSY for its superior trend consistency, lower volatility, and operational catalysts like the ONE Hershey unification, positioning it better amid defensive rotations. While SYY presents valuation appeal and volume resilience, HSY's relative YTD outperformance and stability suggest higher probability of near-term upside in uncertain conditions.
Disclaimer
The information on this webpage is provided for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, a recommendation to purchase or sell any security, or an offer or solicitation related to investments. It does not consider your personal financial situation, goals, or risk profile, and all investing carries inherent risks, including the possibility of losing your entire investment. For more details, please review our full Disclaimers and Limitations.
To compare these two companies we present long-term analysis, their fundamental ratings and make comparative short-term technical analysis which are presented below. The conclusion is HSY is a Hold and SYY is a Hold.
Long-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a long-term outlook for a ticker by using Fundamental Analysis (FA) ratings. The rating of 1 to 100, where 1 is best and 100 is worst, is divided into thirds. The first third (a green rating of 1-33) indicates that the ticker is undervalued; the second third (a grey number between 34 and 66) means that the ticker is valued fairly; and the last third (red number of 67 to 100) reflects that the ticker is undervalued. We use an FA Score to show how many ratings show the ticker to be undervalued (green) or overvalued (red).
HSY’s FA Score shows that 1 FA rating(s) are green whileSYY’s FA Score has 1 green FA rating(s).
- HSY’s FA Score: 1 green, 4 red.
- SYY’s FA Score: 1 green, 4 red.
Short-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a short-term outlook for a ticker by using Technical Analysis (TA) indicators. We use Odds of Success as the percentage of outcomes which confirm successful trade signals in the past.
If the Odds of Success (the likelihood of the continuation of a trend) for each indicator are greater than 50%, then the generated signal is confirmed. A green percentage from 90% to 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bullish trend. A red percentage from 90% - 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bearish trend. All grey percentages are below 50% and are considered not to confirm the trend signal.
HSY’s TA Score shows that 4 TA indicator(s) are bullish while SYY’s TA Score has 5 bullish TA indicator(s).
- HSY’s TA Score: 4 bullish, 4 bearish.
- SYY’s TA Score: 5 bullish, 4 bearish.
Price Growth
HSY (@Food: Specialty/Candy) experienced а -4.78% price change this week, while SYY (@Food Distributors) price change was +4.74% for the same time period.
The average weekly price growth across all stocks in the @Food: Specialty/Candy industry was -2.68%. For the same industry, the average monthly price growth was -2.45%, and the average quarterly price growth was +1.01%.
The average weekly price growth across all stocks in the @Food Distributors industry was -0.06%. For the same industry, the average monthly price growth was +2.02%, and the average quarterly price growth was +1.02%.
Reported Earning Dates
HSY is expected to report earnings on Apr 30, 2026.
SYY is expected to report earnings on Apr 28, 2026.
Industries' Descriptions
@Food: Specialty/Candy (-2.68% weekly)A specialty/candy manufacturer specializes in one or more of the following: chocolate, candies, pasta, condiments, seasonings, among other items. Hershey Company, McCormick & Company and J.M. Smucker Company are some of the major firms in this segment. Demand for this industry’s products comes from both institutions/restaurants as well as households.
@Food Distributors (-0.06% weekly)Food distributors function as intermediaries between food manufacturers and food service operators (such as chefs, restaurants, beverage managers, cafeterias, industrial caterers, hospitals and nursing homes). Food distribution companies buy, store and then supply food items to the food service operators, thereby allowing the latter to have access to a wide range of food items from various manufacturers. Sysco Corporation, US Foods Holding Corp. and Herbalife Nutrition Ltd. are some of the biggest (by market cap) U.S. companies in this segment. Most food service operators buy from local, specialty, and/or broad line food service distributors on a daily or weekly basis. With the rise in e-commerce, consumers are increasingly expecting lower prices, faster service, and higher quality – something that potentially creates the impetus on distribution networks to raise their game.
| HSY | SYY | HSY / SYY | |
| Capitalization | 39B | 36.5B | 107% |
| EBITDA | 1.94B | 4.1B | 47% |
| Gain YTD | 6.547 | 5.051 | 130% |
| P/E Ratio | 44.38 | 20.56 | 216% |
| Revenue | 11.7B | 82.6B | 14% |
| Total Cash | 926M | 169M | 548% |
| Total Debt | 5.74B | 15B | 38% |
HSY | SYY | ||
|---|---|---|---|
OUTLOOK RATING 1..100 | 5 | 16 | |
VALUATION overvalued / fair valued / undervalued 1..100 | 34 Fair valued | 50 Fair valued | |
PROFIT vs RISK RATING 1..100 | 71 | 76 | |
SMR RATING 1..100 | 46 | 14 | |
PRICE GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 59 | 61 | |
P/E GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 7 | 50 | |
SEASONALITY SCORE 1..100 | 50 | 55 |
Tickeron ratings are formulated such that a rating of 1 designates the most successful stocks in a given industry, while a rating of 100 points to the least successful stocks for that industry.
HSY's Valuation (34) in the Food Specialty Or Candy industry is in the same range as SYY (50) in the Food Distributors industry. This means that HSY’s stock grew similarly to SYY’s over the last 12 months.
HSY's Profit vs Risk Rating (71) in the Food Specialty Or Candy industry is in the same range as SYY (76) in the Food Distributors industry. This means that HSY’s stock grew similarly to SYY’s over the last 12 months.
SYY's SMR Rating (14) in the Food Distributors industry is in the same range as HSY (46) in the Food Specialty Or Candy industry. This means that SYY’s stock grew similarly to HSY’s over the last 12 months.
HSY's Price Growth Rating (59) in the Food Specialty Or Candy industry is in the same range as SYY (61) in the Food Distributors industry. This means that HSY’s stock grew similarly to SYY’s over the last 12 months.
HSY's P/E Growth Rating (7) in the Food Specialty Or Candy industry is somewhat better than the same rating for SYY (50) in the Food Distributors industry. This means that HSY’s stock grew somewhat faster than SYY’s over the last 12 months.
| HSY | SYY | |
|---|---|---|
| RSI ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 53% | 2 days ago 57% |
| Stochastic ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 66% | 2 days ago 61% |
| Momentum ODDS (%) | N/A | 2 days ago 44% |
| MACD ODDS (%) | N/A | 2 days ago 45% |
| TrendWeek ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 55% | 2 days ago 48% |
| TrendMonth ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 53% | 2 days ago 53% |
| Advances ODDS (%) | 10 days ago 64% | 4 days ago 49% |
| Declines ODDS (%) | 3 days ago 56% | 9 days ago 53% |
| BollingerBands ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 70% | 2 days ago 51% |
| Aroon ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 57% | 2 days ago 65% |
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SYY and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, SYY has been loosely correlated with USFD. These tickers have moved in lockstep 41% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is some statistical probability that if SYY jumps, then USFD could also see price increases.
| Ticker / NAME | Correlation To SYY | 1D Price Change % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SYY | 100% | +3.00% | ||
| USFD - SYY | 41% Loosely correlated | +4.33% | ||
| PFGC - SYY | 40% Loosely correlated | +5.04% | ||
| UNFI - SYY | 30% Poorly correlated | +4.04% | ||
| ANDE - SYY | 26% Poorly correlated | +1.55% | ||
| CHEF - SYY | 24% Poorly correlated | +4.54% | ||
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