Hershey’s (HSY): Breaking Records During A Recession?

The Hershey Company (HSY) is a multinational manufacturer of chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery, pantry items, gum, mint refreshment, snack bites and mixes, and spreads. It has three reportable segments, including North America Confectionery, North America Salty Snacks, and International, which operate and manufacture products across several countries. Hershey’s is headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania, and is one of the largest chocolate manufacturers in the world. HSY is listed on NYSE and is a component of S&P 500 under Consumer Staples.

HSY bucked the trend compared with S&P and was in a bullish uptrend since Dec 2021. The Wyckoff sign of strength (SOS) rally continued throughout the first quarter of 2022 until it hit $227.50 on 21 Apr. The price then retraced with a slight localized increase in volume. A large single bar down on 18 May marked a Wyckoff change of character (CHoC). This stopped the up swing and into a trading range for several months. However, the lack of significant volume suggests lack of supply to push the price down further.

The price found support around $198 and made several attempts to break the resistance of $227.50 in the subsequent months. These price actions are characteristic of a Wyckoff accumulation phase. Around late October, the price broke above that axis line and hit a new high at…