Hershey 10-K 2024-12-31

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024

OR

For the transition period from to_

Commission file number 1-183

THE HERSHEY COMPANY

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

19 East Chocolate Avenue, Hershey, PA 17033

(Address of principal executive offices and Zip Code)

(717) 534-4200

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: Class B Common Stock, one dollar par value

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐ No ☒

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☒

If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ¨

Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to § 240.10D-1(b). ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes ☐ No ☒

As of June 28, 2024 (the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter), the aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates was $26,717,916,357. Class B Common Stock is not listed for public trading on any exchange or market system. However, Class B shares are convertible into shares of Common Stock at any time on a share-for-share basis. Determination of aggregate market value assumes all outstanding shares of Class B Common Stock held by non-affiliates were converted to Common Stock as of June 28, 2024. The market value indicated is calculated based on the closing price of the Common Stock on the New York Stock Exchange on June 28, 2024 ($183.83 per share).

Indicate the number of shares outstanding of each of the registrant’s classes of common stock, as of the latest practicable date.

Common Stock, one dollar par value—147,797,121 shares, as of February 10, 2025.

Class B Common Stock, one dollar par value—54,613,514 shares, as of February 10, 2025.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

Portions of the Company’s Proxy Statement for the 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders are incorporated by reference into Part III of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

THE HERSHEY COMPANY

Annual Report on Form 10-K

For the Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2024

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This Annual Report on Form 10-K, including the exhibits hereto and the information incorporated by reference herein, contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Many of these forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as “anticipate,” “assume,” “believe,” “continue,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “future,” “intend,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “strategy,” “target” and similar terms, and future or conditional tense verbs like “could,” “may,” “might,” “should,” “will” and “would,” among others. Forward-looking statements are predictions only and actual results could differ materially from management’s expectations due to a variety of factors, including those described below in Item 1A. “Risk Factors” and in Item 7. “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” All forward-looking statements attributable to us or persons working on our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by such risk factors. Given these risks and uncertainties, you should not rely on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. The forward-looking statements that we make in this Annual Report on Form 10-K are based on management’s current views and assumptions regarding future events and speak only as of their dates. We assume no obligation to update developments of these risk factors or to announce publicly any revisions to any of the forward-looking statements that we make, or to make corrections to reflect future events or developments, except as required by the federal securities laws.

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PART I

The Hershey Company was incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware on October 24, 1927 as a successor to a business founded in 1894 by Milton S. Hershey. In this report, the terms “Hershey,” “Company,” “we,” “us” or “our” mean The Hershey Company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries and entities in which it has a controlling financial interest, unless the context indicates otherwise.

Hershey is a global confectionery leader known for making more moments of goodness through chocolate, sweets, mints and other great tasting snacks. We are the largest producer of quality chocolate in North America, a leading snack maker in the United States and a global leader in chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery. We market, sell and distribute our products under more than 90 brand names in approximately 70 countries worldwide.

Reportable Segments

The Company reports its operations through three segments: (i) North America Confectionery, (ii) North America Salty Snacks and (iii) International. This organizational structure aligns with how our Chief Operating Decision Maker (“CODM”) manages our business, including resource allocation and performance assessment, and further aligns with our product categories and the key markets we serve.

• North America Confectionery – This segment is responsible for our traditional chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery market position in the United States and Canada. This includes our business in chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery, gum and refreshment products, protein bars, spreads, snack bites and mixes, as well as pantry and food service lines. This segment also includes our retail operations, including Hershey’s Chocolate World stores in Hershey, Pennsylvania; New York, New York; Las Vegas, Nevada; Niagara Falls (Ontario) and Singapore, as well as operations associated with licensing the use of certain of the Company’s trademarks and products to third parties around the world.

• North America Salty Snacks – This segment is responsible for our salty snacking products in the United States. This includes ready-to-eat popcorn, baked and trans fat free snacks, pretzels and other snacks.

• International – International is a combination of all other operating segments that are not individually material, including those geographic regions where we operate outside of North America. We currently have operations and manufacture product in Mexico, Brazil, India and Malaysia, primarily for consumers in these regions, and also distribute and sell confectionery products in export markets of Asia, Latin America, Middle East, Europe, Africa and other regions.

Financial and other information regarding our segments is provided in our Management’s Discussion and Analysis and Note 13 to the Consolidated Financial Statements.

Business Acquisitions

On November 8, 2024, we completed the acquisition of the Sour Strips brand from Actual Candy, LLC. Sour Strips is

an emerging sour candy brand and is available in a wide range of food distribution channels in the United States.

On May 31, 2023, we completed the acquisition of certain assets that provide additional manufacturing capacity from Weaver Popcorn Manufacturing, Inc. (“Weaver”), a leader in the production and co-packing of microwave popcorn and ready-to-eat popcorn, and former co-manufacturer of the Company’s SkinnyPop brand.

Products and Brands

Our principal product offerings include chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery products; gum and mint refreshment products and protein bars; snack items such as popcorn, pretzels, spreads, snack bites and mixes; and pantry items, such as baking ingredients, toppings and beverages.

• Within our North America Confectionery segment, our product portfolio includes a wide variety of chocolate offerings marketed and sold under the renowned brands of Hershey’s, Reese’s and Kisses, along with other popular chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery brands such as Jolly Rancher, Almond Joy, Brookside, barkTHINS, Cadbury, Good & Plenty, Heath, Kit Kat*®, Payday, Rolo®*, Twizzlers, Sour Strips, Whoppers

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and York. Our protein bar products include ONE bar and our gum and mint products include Ice Breakers mints and chewing gum, Breath Savers mints and Bubble Yum bubble gum. We also have pantry items, including baking products, toppings and sundae syrups sold under the Hershey’s, Reese’s, Heath and Lily’s brands, as well as Hershey’s and Reese’s chocolate spreads and snack bites and mixes.

• Within our North America Salty Snacks segment, we have our salty snack items. This includes ready-to-eat SkinnyPop popcorn, baked and trans fat free Pirates Booty snacks and Dot’s Homestyle Pretzels snacks.

• Within our International segment, we manufacture, market and sell many of these same brands, as well as other brands that are marketed regionally, such as Pelon Pelo Rico confectionery products in Mexico, IO-IO snack products in Brazil and Sofit beverage products in India.

Principal Customers and Marketing Strategy

Our customers are mainly wholesale distributors, chain grocery stores, mass merchandisers, chain drug stores, vending companies, wholesale clubs, convenience stores, dollar stores, concessionaires and department stores. The majority of our customers, with the exception of wholesale distributors, resell our products to end-consumers in retail outlets in North America and other locations worldwide.

In 2024, approximately 27% of our consolidated net sales were made to McLane Company, Inc., one of the largest wholesale distributors in the United States (“U.S.”) to convenience stores, drug stores, wholesale clubs and mass merchandisers and the primary distributor of our products to Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

The foundation of our marketing strategy is our strong brand equities, product innovation and the consistently superior quality of our products. We devote considerable resources to the identification, development, testing, manufacturing and marketing of new products. We utilize a variety of promotional programs directed towards our customers, as well as advertising and promotional programs for consumers of our products, to stimulate sales of certain products at various times throughout the year.

In conjunction with our sales and marketing efforts, our efficient product distribution network helps us maintain sales growth and provide superior customer service by facilitating the shipment of our products from our manufacturing plants to strategically located distribution centers. We primarily use common carriers to deliver our products from these distribution points to our customers.

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Raw Materials and Pricing

Cocoa products, including cocoa liquor, cocoa butter and cocoa powder processed from cocoa beans, are the most significant raw materials we use to produce our chocolate products. These cocoa products are purchased directly from third-party suppliers, who source cocoa beans that are grown principally in Far Eastern, West African, Central and South American regions. West Africa accounts for approximately 70% of the world’s supply of cocoa beans.

Adverse changes in climate or extreme weather, crop disease, political unrest and other problems in cocoa-producing countries have caused price fluctuations in the past, but have never resulted in the total loss of a particular producing country’s cocoa crop and/or exports. In the event that a significant disruption occurs in any given country, we believe cocoa from other producing countries and from current physical cocoa stocks in consuming countries would provide a significant supply buffer.

Our trading company in Switzerland performs all aspects of cocoa procurement, including price risk management, physical supply procurement and sustainable sourcing oversight. The trading company optimizes the supply chain for our cocoa requirements, with a strategic focus on gaining real time access to cocoa market intelligence. It also provides us with the ability to recruit and retain world class commodities traders and procurement professionals and enables enhanced collaboration with commodities trade groups, the global cocoa community and sustainable sourcing resources.

We also use substantial quantities of sugar, corn products, Class II and IV dairy products, wheat products, peanuts, almonds and energy in our production process. Most of these inputs for our domestic and Canadian operations are purchased from suppliers in the United States. For our international operations, inputs not locally available may be imported from other countries.

We change prices and weights of our products when necessary to accommodate changes in input costs, the competitive environment and profit objectives, while at the same time maintaining consumer value. Price increases and weight changes help to offset increases in our input costs, including raw and packaging materials, fuel, utilities, transportation costs and employee benefits. When we implement price increases, there is usually a time lag between the effective date of the list price increases and the impact of the price increases on net sales, in part because we typically honor previous commitments to planned consumer and customer promotions and merchandising events subsequent to the effective date of the price increases. In addition, promotional allowances may be increased subsequent to the effective date, delaying or partially offsetting the impact of price increases on net sales.

Competition

Many of our confectionery and salty snack brands enjoy wide consumer acceptance and are among the leading brands sold in the marketplace in North America and certain international markets. We sell our brands in highly competitive markets with many other global multinational, national, regional and local firms. Some of our competitors are large private companies, as well as large retailers, that have significant resources and substantial international operations. Competition in our product categories is based on product innovation, product quality, price, brand recognition and loyalty, effectiveness of marketing and promotional activity, the ability to identify and satisfy consumer preferences, as well as convenience and service. We have also experienced increased competition from other snack items, and through innovation and acquisitions, we are continuing to expand the boundaries of our brands to capture new snacking occasions.

Working Capital, Seasonality and Backlog

Our sales are typically higher during the third and fourth quarters of the year, representing seasonal and holiday-related sales patterns. We manufacture primarily for stock and typically fill customer orders within a few days of receipt. Therefore, the backlog of any unfilled orders is not material to our total annual sales. Additional information relating to our cash flows from operations and working capital practices is provided in our Management’s Discussion and Analysis.

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Trademarks, Service Marks and License Agreements

We own various registered and unregistered trademarks and service marks. The trademarks covering our key product brands are of material importance to our business. Depending on the country, trademarks remain valid for as long as they are in use or their registration status is maintained. Trademark registrations generally are renewable for fixed terms. We follow a practice of seeking trademark protection in the United States and other key international markets where our products are sold. We also grant trademark licenses to third parties to produce and sell pantry items, flavored milks and various other products primarily under the Hershey’s and Reese’s brand names.

Furthermore, we have rights under license agreements with several companies to manufacture and/or sell and distribute certain products. Our rights under these agreements are extendible on a long-term basis at our option. Our most significant licensing agreements are as follows:

Research and Development

We engage in a variety of research and development activities in a number of countries, including the U.S., Mexico, Brazil, India and Malaysia. We develop new products, improve the quality of existing products, improve and modernize production processes and develop and implement new technologies to enhance the quality and value of both current and proposed product lines. Information concerning our research and development expense is contained in Note 1 to the Consolidated Financial Statements.

Food Quality and Safety Regulation

The manufacture and sale of consumer food products is highly regulated. In the U.S., our activities are subject to regulation by various government agencies, including the Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Agriculture, the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of Commerce and the Environmental Protection Agency, as well as various state and local agencies. Similar agencies also regulate our businesses outside of the U.S.

We believe our Product Excellence Program provides us with an effective product quality and safety program. This program is integral to our global supply chain platform and is intended to ensure that all products we purchase, manufacture and distribute are safe, are of high quality and comply with applicable laws and regulations.

Through our Product Excellence Program, we evaluate our supply chain including ingredients, packaging, processes, products, distribution and the environment to determine where product quality and safety controls are necessary. We identify risks and establish controls intended to ensure product quality and safety. Various government agencies and third-party firms, as well as our quality assurance staff, conduct audits of all facilities that manufacture our products to assure effectiveness and compliance with our program and applicable laws and regulations.

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Environmental Considerations

Beyond ordinary operating and capital expenditures that we make to comply with government regulations, including environmental laws and regulations, Hershey has made several voluntary commitments to drive long-term growth and business resilience and reduce our environmental impacts, including efforts to eliminate commodity-driven deforestation and reduce greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions across our own operations and supply chain. Our climate change related investments and expenditures primarily focus on our Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions, Forest Land and Agriculture (“FLAG”) emissions and non-FLAG emissions consistent with global environmental standards. The annual operating and capital expenditures associated with ordinary course payments and additional climate change commitments are not material with respect to our results of operations, capital expenditures or competitive position.

Sustainability

The Company’s commitment to sustainability started with our founder’s belief in responsible citizenship. He was a purpose-driven leader who believed we could use chocolate to Make More Moments of Goodness in the world for our consumers today and for many generations to come. This belief resulted in a strong investment in local communities and the establishment of Milton Hershey School for disadvantaged kids. We continue that legacy today through our global sustainability strategy: Our Shared Goodness Promise, which guides how we empower the remarkable people who make and sell our brands, interact with farming communities that grow our ingredients, deliver on our commitments to consumers, customers, and external stakeholders, protect the environment and support children and youth.

To learn more about our Sustainability-related goals, progress and initiatives, as well as review our annual ESG Report and accompanying suite of Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) reporting frameworks, policies, and disclosures, access the Sustainability section of our website at: https://www.thehersheycompany.com/en_us/sustainability.html. Information found on the Company’s website is not part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K or any other report filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”).

Financial Information by Geographic Area

Our principal operations and markets are located in the United States. The percentage of total consolidated net sales for our businesses outside of the United States was 12.8% for 2024, 12.7% for 2023 and 12.5% for 2022. The percentage of total long-lived assets outside of the United States was 15.4% as of December 31, 2024 and 17.4% as of December 31, 2023.

Human Capital

As of December 31, 2024, the Company employed approximately 18,540 full-time and 1,490 part-time employees worldwide. Collective bargaining agreements covered approximately 6,525 employees, or approximately 33% of the Company’s employees worldwide. During 2025, agreements are expected to be negotiated for certain employees at seven facilities, none of which are within the United States, comprising approximately 69% of total employees under collective bargaining agreements. We believe our efforts in managing our workforce have been effective, as evidenced by a strong culture and a good relationship between the Company and our employees.

We are a purpose-driven company and for more than a century, our iconic brands have been built on a foundation of community investment and connections between people around the world. We could not have achieved this without our remarkable employees who make our purpose a reality. As a result, our human capital strategies are material to our operations and core to the long-term success of the Company.

• Our People, Safety and Employee Engagement. Our employees are among our most important resources and are critical to our continued success. We provide a workplace that develops, supports and motivates our people. The overall well-being and safety of our employees remains one of our top priorities. We continue to invest in training, workplace resources and leading systems and processes to ensure the responsible management of all facilities. Additionally, continuous listening surveys are distributed throughout the year to all employees globally to hear their thoughts on the Company’s direction and their place in it. These continuous touchpoints allow for real-time feedback and action from the Company. These surveys are further supplemented with quarterly and informative enterprise summits and team “Ask Me Anything” meetings, which, in conjunction with the continuous listening surveys, generate stronger employee engagement with the Company’s strategy, initiatives and leadership.

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• Talent Acquisition, Development and Training. Hiring and developing our employees is critically important to our operations and we are focused on creating experiences and programs that foster growth and performance. We provide all employees the chance to learn, grow and own their work. We have partnered with leading online content experts and increased internal learning development to expand our catalog of online and classroom courses. Additionally, we co-created a culture of development with the enthusiastic support of our employees. Through individual development plans, learning opportunities, feedback and coaching, employees can build careers at The Hershey Company, as evidenced by the fact that the majority of our executive officers were promoted from within the organization (see Information about Our Executive Officers).

• Compensation, Benefits and Wellness. In addition to offering competitive, fair and transparent compensation, we also offer a suite of benefits, including comprehensive health and meaningful retirement benefits to eligible employees, tying incentive compensation to both business and individual performance, offering parental leave and adoption benefits and maintaining an employee stock purchase plan. We also provide a number of innovative programs designed to promote physical and emotional well-being, including ergonomic workspaces, a state-of-the-art fitness center at our Hershey, Pennsylvania campus and private rooms designed for quiet reflection, prayer or wellness breaks. The Company also offers SmartFlex benefits which is our suite of policies that allows individuals to create their own balance between work and personal life, including flexing work time based on work priorities or personal commitments, such as caring for children or family members. We believe that this flexibility improves productivity, boosts job satisfaction and increases employee engagement. Additionally, the Company offers a “Best of Both” flexible work model for corporate and commercial employees to balance work and personal well-being. This model allows employees the option to work either remotely, in-office, or both, depending on individual needs, personal schedules and work demands. This offers the benefits of flexibility and in-person collaboration, while maintaining productivity and overall job satisfaction.

• Togetherness. We believe our business is stronger when we practice our Company value of Togetherness. Our people-focused programs help advance innovation, business growth and create a strong company culture that is fair, which enables us to delight consumers with beloved snacking brands. Our gender representation includes women occupying many of the top positions in the Company, including Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board, Chief Accounting Officer and President, Salty Snacks, and approximately 50% representation across the Company. Additionally, four of our 10 Board members are women (40% representation). In 2024, we maintained fair and equitable pay achievements, including aggregate salary U.S. gender pay equity and aggregate U.S. salary people of color pay equity. Further, our eight employee-led Business Resource Groups, which include Abilities First, Black Heritage, Asian and Pacific Islander, GenH (Generations), Latino, Prism (LGBTQ), Veterans and Women’s, are open to all and play a critical role in providing mentoring and career development opportunities for all, delivering commercial business insights, and connecting people to the Company and the communities where we do business. In 2024, the Company was recognized among the World’s Most Ethical Companies as rated by Ethisphere, achieved global Great Place to Work certifications, and was recognized as a Best Place to Work for Disability Inclusion based on our Disability Equality Index score.

• Community and Social Impact. Our philanthropy and volunteerism efforts reflect how we live out the Company’s value of making a difference and our purpose of Making More Moments of Goodness, from supporting causes our employees care about to investing in the long-term success of the communities where we live and work. We work closely with counterparts in each of our plant and office locations across the United States and globally to identify local community needs and craft tailored approaches to provide support. This work includes forging partnerships with local non-governmental organizations, providing grants and contributions and organizing volunteer service activities and employee fundraisers.

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Business Realignment Activities and Strategic Initiatives

From time to time, we implement business realignment activities to support key strategic initiatives designed to maintain long-term growth. Further to such goal, in February 2024, the Board of Directors approved the Advancing Agility & Automation Initiative, which is a multi-year productivity program to improve supply chain and manufacturing-related spend, optimize selling, general and administrative expenses, leverage new technology and business models to further simplify and automate processes, and generate long-term savings.

In 2023, we completed our International Optimization Program, an initiative which began in the fourth quarter of 2020 and was designed to increase our operating effectiveness and efficiency, to reduce our costs and/or to generate savings that can be reinvested in other areas of our business.

Costs associated with business realignment activities are classified in our Consolidated Statements of Income as described in Note 9 to the Consolidated Financial Statements.

Available Information

The Company's website address is www.thehersheycompany.com. We file or furnish annual, quarterly and current reports, proxy statements and other information, including amendments to these reports, with the SEC. You may obtain a copy of any of these reports, free of charge, from the Investors section of our website as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such material with, or furnish it to, the SEC. The SEC maintains an Internet site that also contains these reports at www.sec.gov. In addition, copies of the Company’s annual report will be made available, free of charge, on written request to the Company.

We have a Code of Conduct that applies to our Board of Directors (“Board”) and all Company officers and employees, including, without limitation, our Chief Executive Officer and “senior financial officers” (including the Chief Financial Officer, Chief Accounting Officer and persons performing similar functions). You can obtain a copy of our Code of Conduct, as well as our Corporate Governance Guidelines and charters for each of the Board’s standing committees, from the Investors section of our website at: https://www.thehersheycompany.com/en_us/investors.html. If we change or waive any portion of the Code of Conduct that applies to any of our directors, executive officers or senior financial officers, we will post that information on our website. Information found on the Company’s website is not part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K or any other report filed with the SEC.

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You should carefully read the following discussion of significant factors, events and uncertainties when evaluating our business and the forward-looking information contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. The events and consequences discussed in these risk factors could materially and adversely affect our business, operating results, liquidity and financial condition. While we believe we have identified and discussed below the key risk factors affecting our business, these risk factors do not identify all the risks we face, and there may be additional risks and uncertainties that we do not presently know or that we do not currently believe to be significant that may have a material adverse effect on our business, performance or financial condition in the future.

Risks Related to Our Business and Operations

Our Company’s reputation or brand image might be impacted as a result of issues or concerns relating to the quality and safety of our products, ingredients or packaging, human and workplace rights, and other environmental, social or governance matters, which in turn could result in litigation or otherwise negatively impact our operating results.

In order to sell our iconic, branded products, we need to maintain a good reputation with our customers, consumers, suppliers, vendors and employees, among others. Issues related to the quality and safety of our products, ingredients or packaging could jeopardize our Company’s image and reputation. We have in the past recalled or removed certain products from store shelves, and may in the future need to do so again in the future. Negative publicity related to these types of concerns, or related to product contamination or product tampering, whether valid or not, could decrease demand for our products or cause production and delivery disruptions. In addition, negative publicity related to our environmental, social or governance practices could also impact our reputation with customers, consumers, suppliers and vendors.

We have been in the past and in the future could potentially be subject to litigation or government actions as a result of issues or concerns relating to the quality and safety of our products, ingredients or packaging, human and workplace rights, and other environmental, social or governance matters, which could result in payments of fines or damages. Costs associated with these potential actions, as well as the potential impact on our reputation or ability to sell our products, could negatively affect our operating results.

Disruption to our manufacturing operations or supply chain could impair our ability to produce or deliver finished products, resulting in a negative impact on our operating results.

Approximately 74% of our manufacturing capacity is located in the United States. Disruption to our global manufacturing operations or our supply chain could result from, among other factors, the following:

• Natural disasters;

• Pandemics, epidemics, coronavirus disease and/or other outbreak of disease;

• Climate change and severity of extreme weather;

• Fires or explosions;

• Terrorism or other acts of violence;

• Labor strikes or other labor activities;

• Unavailability of raw or packaging materials;

• Third party service provider disruptions, such as cyber breaches or system failures;

• Operational and/or financial instability of key suppliers, and other vendors or service providers; and

• Suboptimal production planning which could impact our ability to cost-effectively meet product demand.

We believe that we take adequate precautions to mitigate the impact of possible disruptions. We have strategies and plans in place to manage disruptive events if they were to occur, including our global supply chain strategies and our principle-based global labor relations strategy. If we are unable, or find that it is not financially feasible, to effectively plan for, mitigate or manage operational stability and business resiliency risks, particularly within our international markets and snacks portfolio, due to the potential impacts of such disruptive events on our manufacturing operations or supply chain, our financial condition and results of operations could be negatively impacted if such events were to occur.

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We might not be able to hire, engage and retain the talented global human capital we need to drive our growth strategies.

Our future success depends upon our ability to identify, hire, develop, engage and retain talented personnel across the globe. Competition for global talent is intense, and we might not be able to identify and hire the personnel we need to continue to evolve and grow our business. In particular, if we are unable to hire the right individuals to fill new or existing senior management positions as vacancies arise, our business performance may be adversely impacted.

Activities related to identifying, recruiting, hiring and integrating qualified individuals require significant time and attention. We may also need to invest significant amounts of cash and equity to attract talented new employees, and we may never realize returns on these investments.

In addition to hiring new employees, we must continue to focus on retaining and engaging the talented individuals we need to sustain our core business and lead our developing businesses into new markets, channels and categories. This may require significant investments in training, coaching and other career development and retention activities. If we are not able to effectively retain and grow our talent, our ability to achieve our strategic objectives will be adversely affected, which may negatively impact our financial condition and results of operations.

Risks associated with climate change and other environmental impacts, and increased focus and evolving views of our customers, stockholders and other stakeholders on climate change issues, could negatively affect our business and operations.

Climate-related changes can increase variability in, or otherwise impact, natural disasters, including weather patterns, with the potential for increased frequency and severity of significant weather events, natural hazards, rising mean temperature and sea levels, and long-term changes in precipitation patterns. Climate change or weather-related disruptions to our supply chain can impact the availability and cost of materials needed for manufacturing, which may increase insurance and other operating costs.

Increased focus on climate change has led to legislative and regulatory efforts to combat both potential causes and adverse impacts of climate change, including regulation of GHG emissions. New or increasing laws and regulations related to GHG emissions and other climate change related concerns may adversely affect us, our suppliers and our customers, and may require the Company to invest in additional capital investments to maintain compliance. Our value chain faces similar challenges as our products rely on agricultural ingredients and a global supply chain. Climate change poses a significant and increasing risk to global food production systems and to the safety and resilience of the communities where we live, work and source our ingredients. The GHG impacts of land-use change are most pronounced in our cocoa supply chain, where we have already been working for several years to prevent deforestation and build climate resilience. Additionally, any non-compliance with legislative and regulatory requirements could negatively impact our reputation and ability to do business.

Investors, customers, advisory services, government regulators and other market participants may be focused on the environmental or sustainability practices, disclosures and performance of companies. We believe our sustainability practices, disclosures and performance are focused on the most material risks and opportunities to our business and support our environmental goals and continue to evolve to meet the growing needs of our stakeholders. However, if our environmental goals do not meet investor or other external stakeholder expectations and standards, our access to capital may be negatively impacted. An enforcement action for non-compliance with regulations or reporting requirements could harm our reputation, financial position and ability to grow. A failure to meet investor or other external stakeholder expectations or standards may adversely affect our results of operations, ability to manage our liquidity, or ability to implement our strategies.

The Company publishes its environmental goals, with a particular focus on achieving an absolute reduction in our Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions, Forest Land and Agriculture (FLAG) emissions, and non-FLAG emissions consistent with global environmental standards. The costs of our voluntary commitments may be greater than expected, and there can be no assurance the Company will achieve its goals, or meet the evolving sustainability expectations and standards of our investors or other external stakeholders. Any failure to achieve our goals, a perception of our failure to act responsibly with respect to the environment, or failure to respond to new or evolving legal and regulatory requirements or other sustainability concerns could adversely affect our business, reputation and increase risk of litigation.

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The effects and costs of climate change, or any failure to meet related requirements and expectations, could have a negative impact on our reputation, financial condition and results of operations.

Risks Related to the Industry in Which We Operate

Increases in raw material and energy costs along with the availability of adequate supplies of raw materials could affect future financial results.

We use many different commodities for our business, including cocoa products, sugar, corn products, dairy products, wheat products, peanuts, almonds, natural gas and diesel fuel.

Commodities are subject to price volatility and changes in supply caused by numerous factors, including:

• Commodity market fluctuations;

• Currency exchange rates;

• Imbalances between supply and demand;

• Rising levels of inflation and interest rates related to domestic and global economic conditions or supply chain issues;

• The effects of climate change and extreme weather on crop yield and quality;

• Speculative influences;

• Trade agreements among producing and consuming nations;

• Supplier compliance with commitments;

• Import/export requirements for raw materials and finished goods;

• Political unrest in producing countries;

• Introduction of living income premiums or similar requirements;

• Changes in governmental agricultural programs and energy policies; and

• Other events beyond our control such as the impacts on the business or supply chain arising from the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

Although we use forward contracts and commodity futures and options contracts to hedge commodity prices where possible, commodity price increases ultimately result in corresponding increases in our raw material and energy costs. For example, our cost of sales during the year ended 2024 compared to the same period of 2023 experienced an incremental $563.0 million of favorable mark-to-market activity on our commodity derivative instruments intended to economically hedge future years’ commodity purchases, more than offsetting higher commodity costs. During the year ended 2024, market prices for the majority of our exchange traded commodities increased, including cocoa, which has increased approximately 130% since the beginning of the year.

We continue to monitor and use our risk management strategy where possible to hedge commodity prices in order to mitigate corresponding increases in our raw materials and energy costs, however, if we are unable to offset cost increases for major raw materials and energy, there could be a negative impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

Price increases may not be sufficient to offset cost increases and maintain profitability or may result in sales volume declines associated with pricing elasticity.

We may be able to pass some or all raw material, energy and other input cost increases to customers by increasing the selling prices of our products or decreasing the size of our products; however, higher product prices or decreased product sizes may also result in a reduction in sales volume and/or consumption. If we are not able to increase our selling prices or reduce product sizes (including if inflation outpaces our pricing elasticity) sufficiently, or in a timely manner, to offset increased raw material, energy or other input costs, including packaging, freight, tariffs, direct labor, overhead and employee benefits, or if our sales volume decreases significantly, there could be a negative impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

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Market demand for new and existing products could decline.

We operate in highly competitive markets and rely on continued demand for our products. To generate revenues and profits, we must sell products that appeal to our customers and to consumers. Our continued success is impacted by many factors, including the following:

• Effective retail execution;

• Appropriate advertising campaigns and marketing programs;

• Our ability to secure adequate shelf space at retail locations;

• Our ability to drive sustainable innovation and maintain a strong pipeline of new products in the confectionery and broader snacking categories;

• Our ability to react to changes in product category consumption;

• Our response to consumer demographics and trends, including but not limited to, trends relating to store trips and the impact of the growing digital commerce channel; and

• Consumer health and wellness concerns, including weight management (i.e., use of medications, dieting) and the consumption of certain ingredients.

There continues to be competitive product and pricing pressures in the markets where we operate, as well as challenges in maintaining profit margins. We must maintain mutually beneficial relationships with our key customers, including retailers and distributors, to compete effectively. Our largest customer, McLane Company, Inc., accounted for approximately 27% of our consolidated net sales in 2024. McLane Company, Inc. is one of the largest wholesale distributors in the United States to convenience stores, drug stores, wholesale clubs and mass merchandisers, including Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

Increased marketplace competition could hurt our business.

The global confectionery and snacks packaged goods industry is intensely competitive and consolidation in this industry continues. Some of our competitors are large private companies, as well as large retailers, that have significant resources and substantial international operations. We continue to experience increased levels of in-store activity for other snack items, which has pressured confectionery category growth. In order to protect our existing market share or capture increased market share in this highly competitive retail environment, we may be required to increase expenditures for promotions and advertising, and must continue to introduce and establish new products. Due to inherent risks in the marketplace associated with advertising and new product introductions, including uncertainties about trade and consumer acceptance, increased expenditures may not prove successful in maintaining or enhancing our market share and could result in lower sales and profits. In addition, we may incur increased credit and other business risks because we operate in a highly competitive retail environment.

Risks Related to Strategic Initiatives

Our financial results may be adversely impacted by the failure to successfully execute or integrate acquisitions, divestitures and joint ventures.

From time to time, we may evaluate potential acquisitions, divestitures or joint ventures that align with our strategic objectives. The success of such activity depends, in part, upon our ability to identify suitable buyers, sellers or business partners; perform effective assessments prior to contract execution; negotiate contract terms; and, if applicable, obtain government approval. These activities may present certain financial, managerial, staffing and talent, and operational risks, including diversion of management’s attention from existing core businesses; difficulties integrating or separating businesses from existing operations; and challenges presented by acquisitions or joint ventures which may not achieve sales levels and profitability that justify the investments made. If the acquisitions, divestitures or joint ventures are not successfully implemented or completed, there could be a negative impact on our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

In 2024, we completed the acquisition of the Sour Strips brand from Actual Candy, LLC. Sour Strips is an emerging sour candy brand. In 2023, we completed the acquisition of certain assets that provide additional manufacturing capacity from Weaver Popcorn, a manufacturer of SkinnyPop popcorn, which helped us strengthen our supply chain capabilities. While we believe significant operating synergies can be obtained in connection with these acquisitions, achievement of these synergies will be driven by our ability to successfully leverage Hershey’s resources, expertise, capability-building, distribution locations and customer base. In addition, the acquisitions of Dot’s and Pretzels in

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2021 were important steps in our journey to expand our breadth in snacking, as they should enable us to bring scale and category management capabilities to a key sub-segment of the warehouse snack aisle. If we are unable to successfully couple Hershey’s scale and expertise in brand building with the existing operations of our acquired brands, it may impact our ability to expand our snacking footprint at our desired pace.

Our international operations may not achieve projected growth objectives, which could adversely impact our overall business and results of operations.

In 2024, 2023 and 2022, respectively, we derived approximately 12.8%, 12.7% and 12.5% of our net sales from customers located outside of the United States. Additionally, approximately 15% of our total long-lived assets were located outside of the United States as of December 31, 2024. As part of our strategy, we have made investments outside of the United States, particularly in Canada, Malaysia, Mexico, Brazil and India. As a result, we are subject to risks and uncertainties relating to international sales and operations, including:

• The inability to manage operational stability and business resiliency within our international markets due to unforeseen global economic and environmental changes resulting in business interruption, supply constraints, inflation, deflation or decreased demand;

• The inability to establish, develop and achieve market acceptance of our global brands in international markets;

• Difficulties and costs associated with compliance and enforcement of remedies under a wide variety of complex laws, treaties and regulations;

• Unexpected changes in regulatory environments;

• Political and economic instability, including the possibility of civil unrest, terrorism, mass violence or armed conflict;

• Nationalization of our properties by foreign governments;

• Tax rates that may exceed those in the United States and earnings that may be subject to withholding requirements and incremental taxes upon repatriation;

• Potentially negative consequences from changes in tax laws;

• The imposition of tariffs on U.S. imports and retaliatory tariffs in response, quotas, trade barriers, other trade protection measures and import or export licensing requirements;

• Increased costs, disruptions in shipping or reduced availability of freight transportation;

• The impact of currency exchange rate fluctuations between the U.S. dollar and foreign currencies;

• Failure to gain sufficient profitable scale in certain international markets resulting in an inability to cover manufacturing fixed costs or resulting in losses from impairment or sale of assets; and

• Failure to recruit, retain and build a talented and engaged global workforce.

If we are not able to achieve our projected international growth objectives and mitigate the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with our international operations, there could be a negative impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

We may not fully realize the expected cost savings and/or operating efficiencies associated with our strategic initiatives or restructuring programs, which may have an adverse impact on our business.

We depend on our ability to evolve and grow, and as changes in our business environment occur, we may adjust our business plans by introducing new strategic initiatives or restructuring programs to meet these changes. Recently introduced strategic initiatives include our efforts to continue to expand our presence in digital commerce, to transform our manufacturing, commercial and corporate operations through digital technologies and to enhance our data analytics capabilities to develop new commercial insights. If we are not able to capture our share of the expanding digital commerce market, if we do not adequately leverage technology to improve operating efficiencies or if we are unable to develop the data analytics capabilities needed to generate actionable commercial insights, our business performance may be impacted, which may negatively impact our financial condition and results of operations.

Additionally, from time to time we implement business realignment activities to support key strategic initiatives designed to maintain long-term sustainable growth, such as the International Optimization Program, which we commenced in the fourth quarter of 2020 and completed in 2023. This program was intended to increase our operating effectiveness and efficiency, to reduce our costs and/or to generate savings that can be reinvested in other areas of our business. Additionally, in February 2024, the Board of Directors approved the Advancing Agility & Automation

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Initiative, which is a multi-year productivity program to improve supply chain and manufacturing-related spend, optimize selling, general and administrative expenses, leverage new technology and business models to further simplify and automate processes, and generate long-term savings. We cannot guarantee that we will be able to successfully implement these strategic initiatives and restructuring programs, that we will achieve or sustain the intended benefits under these programs, or that the benefits, even if achieved, will be adequate to meet our long-term growth and profitability expectations, which could in turn adversely affect our business.

Risks Related to Governmental and Regulatory Changes

Changes in governmental laws, regulations and policies could increase our costs and liabilities or impact demand for our products.

Changes in U.S. and non-U.S. laws, regulations and policies and the manner in which they are interpreted or applied may alter our business environment. These negative impacts could result from changes in food and drug laws, laws related to advertising and marketing practices, accounting standards, taxation compliance and requirements, tariffs on U.S. imports and retaliatory tariffs in response, competition laws, employment laws, import/export requirements and environmental laws, among others. For example, the European Union’s Deforestation Regulation (“EUDR”) will require the Company to conduct extensive diligence on seven commodities, including cocoa, palm oil and soy, as well as products derived from these commodities, such as chocolate, and the value chain, to ensure the goods do not result from recent deforestation, forest degradation, or breaches of local laws in order to sell such products in the European Union market or exported from it. The EUDR is scheduled to be effective in December 2025, following a one-year postponement. The EUDR, and other current or proposed regulations in markets in which we operate, are likely to increase our compliance costs, could depress sales in such markets if our products are not in compliance by applicable effective dates, and could result in fines and penalties or reputational harm if we do not fully comply. It is possible that we could become subject to additional liabilities in the future resulting from changes in laws and regulations that could result in an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Political, economic and/or financial market conditions, including impacts on our business arising from the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, could negatively impact our financial results.

Our operations are impacted by consumer spending levels and impulse purchases, which are affected by general macroeconomic conditions, consumer confidence, employment levels, the availability of consumer credit and interest rates on that credit, consumer debt levels, energy costs and other factors. Volatility in food and energy costs, sustained global recessions, broad political instability, rising unemployment, pandemic, or other outbreak of disease, climate change, weather, natural and other disasters, changing consumer demand, and declines in personal spending could adversely impact our revenues, profitability and financial condition.

Changes in financial market conditions may make it difficult to access credit markets on commercially acceptable terms, which may reduce liquidity or increase borrowing costs for our Company, our customers and our suppliers. A significant reduction in liquidity could increase counterparty risk associated with certain suppliers and service providers, resulting in disruption to our supply chain and/or higher costs, and could impact our customers, resulting in a reduction in our revenue, or a possible increase in bad debt expense.

Additionally, in February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine and this conflict is still ongoing. In response, the U.S. and other countries have imposed sanctions on Russia and may impose further sanctions that could damage or disrupt international commerce and the global economy. With respect to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the situation remains dynamic and subject to rapid and possibly material change. The Company’s efforts to manage and mitigate any direct or indirect effects from this conflict may ultimately be unsuccessful, and the effectiveness of these efforts depends on factors beyond our control, including the duration of the conflict and potential governmental actions. The potential effects of the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine may also impact many of the other risk factors described herein.

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Risks Related to Digital Transformation, Cybersecurity and Data Privacy

Disruptions, failures or security breaches of our information technology infrastructure could have a negative impact on our operations.

Information technology is critically important to our business operations. We use information technology to manage all business processes including manufacturing, financial, logistics, sales, marketing and administrative functions. These processes collect, interpret and distribute business data and communicate internally and externally with employees, suppliers, customers and other third parties.

We are regularly the target of cyber, ransomware and other security threats. Therefore, we continuously monitor and update our information technology networks and infrastructure to prevent, detect, address and mitigate the risk of unauthorized access, misuse, computer viruses and other events that could have a security impact. We invest in industry standard security technology to protect the Company’s data and business processes against risk of data security breach and cyber attack. Our data security management program includes identity, trust, vulnerability and threat management business processes as well as adoption of standard data protection policies. We measure our data security effectiveness through industry-accepted methods and remediate significant findings. Additionally, we certify our major technology suppliers and any outsourced services through accepted security certification standards. We maintain and routinely test backup systems and disaster recovery, along with external network security penetration testing by an independent third party as part of our business resiliency preparedness. We also have processes in place to prevent disruptions resulting from our implementation of new software and systems. Employees are trained annually on cybersecurity wellness and our acceptable use policy and we have implemented phishing simulations to increase awareness and compliance. We also currently maintain a cyber insurance policy that provides coverage for security breaches; however, such insurance may not be sufficient in type or amount to cover us against claims related to security breaches, cyber-attacks and other related breaches.

We have been subject to cyber attacks, ransomware and other security breaches, though these incidents historically have not had a significant impact on our business operations. The techniques that are used to obtain unauthorized access, disable or degrade service or sabotage systems change frequently and may be difficult to detect for long periods of time, and the sophistication of efforts by hackers to gain unauthorized access to information systems has continued to increase in recent years and may continue to do so. Despite continued vigilance in these areas, disruptions in or failures of information technology systems are possible and could have a negative impact on our operations or business reputation. Failure of our systems, including failures due to cyber attacks, ransomware or other security breaches that would prevent the ability of systems to function as intended, could cause transaction errors, loss of customers and sales, and could have negative consequences to our Company, our employees and those with whom we do business. This in turn could have a negative impact on our financial condition and results or operations. In addition, the cost to remediate any damages to our information technology systems suffered as a result of a cyber attack, ransomware or other security breach could be significant.

Complications with the design or implementation of our new enterprise resource planning system could adversely impact our business and operations.

We rely extensively on information systems and technology to manage our business and summarize operating results. We are in the process of a multi-year implementation of a new global enterprise resource planning (“ERP”) system; specifically, in April 2024, we operationalized the final phase of our project by implementing our new ERP system in the North America Confectionery segment and select business units included in our International segment. This ERP system replaces our legacy operating and financial systems and is designed to accurately maintain the Company’s financial records, enhance operational functionality and provide timely information to the Company’s management team related to the operation of the business. The ERP system implementation process has required, and will continue to require, the investment of significant personnel and financial resources as we support post-implementation efforts and system functionality. We may not be able to successfully support post-implementation efforts without experiencing delays, increased costs and other difficulties. Any disruptions or difficulties in using our ERP system could result in harm to our business, including our ability to forecast, manufacture or facilitate the shipment of our product, record net sales and collect our outstanding receivables. If we are unable to successfully manage post-implementation efforts related to our new ERP system as planned, our financial positions, results of operations and cash flows could be negatively impacted. Additionally, if the ERP system does not operate as intended, the

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effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting could be adversely affected or our ability to assess those controls adequately could be further delayed.

None.

Cybersecurity Risk Management and Strategy

Information technology is important to our business operations, and we are committed to protecting the privacy, security and integrity of our data, as well as our employee and customer data. The Company has a comprehensive cybersecurity program in place for assessing, identifying and managing cybersecurity risks that is designed to protect its systems and data from unauthorized access, use or other security impact, that is aligned with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (“NIST”). This program is integrated into the Company’s overall Enterprise Risk Management and Resiliency process.

We continuously monitor and update our information technology networks and infrastructure to prevent, detect, address and mitigate risks associated with unauthorized access, misuse, computer viruses and other events that could have a security impact. We invest in industry standard security technology to protect the Company’s data and business processes against risk of cybersecurity incidents. Our data security management program includes identity, trust, vulnerability and threat management business processes, as well as adoption of standard data protection policies. We measure our data security effectiveness by benchmarking against industry-accepted methods and we work to remediate any significant findings. We maintain and routinely test backup systems and disaster recovery and also have processes in place to prevent disruptions resulting from our implementation of new software and systems.

The Company has a comprehensive incident response plan to address cybersecurity incidents. The Company’s incident response plan includes procedures for identifying, containing and responding to cybersecurity incidents and is subject to regular review and assessment to ensure that it is effective in protecting the Company’s information technology. To date, the Company believes that its cybersecurity program has been effective in protecting the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of its information; however, the Company cannot guarantee that its cybersecurity program will be successful in preventing all cybersecurity incidents. Further, we currently maintain a cyber insurance policy that provides coverage for security breaches; however, such insurance may not be sufficient in type or amount to cover us against claims related to security breaches, cyber-attacks and other related breaches.

The Company engages external parties, including consultants, computer security firms and risk management and governance experts, to enhance its cybersecurity oversight. In order to oversee and identify risks from cybersecurity threats associated with the Company’s use of third-party service providers, we also have a third-party risk management program designed to help protect against the misuse of information technology by third parties and business partners, which includes certification of our major technology suppliers and any outsourced services through accepted security certification standards.

While we are regularly subject to cybersecurity attacks, ransomware and other security breaches, the Company has not experienced any material cybersecurity incidents or a series of related unauthorized occurrences for the year ended December 31, 2024. The Company does not believe that there are currently any known risks from cybersecurity threats that have materially affected or are reasonably likely to materially affect the Company or its business strategy, results of operations or financial condition. However, as discussed under “Item 1A. Risk Factors,” specifically the risks titled “Disruptions, failures or security breaches of our information technology infrastructure could have a negative impact on our operations,” the sophistication of cyber, ransomware and other security threats continues to increase, and the preventative actions we take to reduce the risk of these incidents and protect our systems and information may be insufficient. Accordingly, no matter how well designed or implemented our controls are, we will not be able to anticipate all cybersecurity attacks, ransomware and other security breaches and we may not be able to implement effective preventive measures against such security breaches in a timely manner.

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Cybersecurity Governance and Oversight

The Company’s Board of Directors has a mix of experiences, skills, qualifications and backgrounds to support strategy and risk oversight, including expertise in cybersecurity and oversight of cybersecurity matters. This oversight is achieved through the Company’s Finance and Risk Management (“F&RM”) Committee, which is comprised of five members of our Board of Directors, and one Board member who serves in an ex-officio capacity. The F&RM Committee is responsible for reviewing key enterprise risks identified through our Enterprise Risk Management and Resiliency process, which includes information security strategies and risks, as well as data privacy and protection risks and mitigation strategies (collectively, “Information Security”). At each regularly scheduled F&RM Committee meeting, management, through the Company’s Chief Information Security Officer (“CISO”), reports on Information Security controls, audits, guidelines and developments and the F&RM Committee is notified between such updates regarding significant new cybersecurity threats or incidents.

The CISO, who reports to the Chief Technology Officer (“CTO”), oversees a dedicated Information Security team that is supported by the Privacy Center of Excellence, and works in partnership with internal audit to review certain information technology-related internal controls with our independent auditors as part of the overall internal controls process. The Chief Information Officer (“CIO”), who also reports to the CTO, focuses on our technology modernization priorities, integrating innovative technology solutions to support our business goals, and leading enterprise-wide IT transformation initiatives. Our CTO, who reports to the Chief Executive Officer, has oversight of our Information Security team and leads the company’s global technology strategy, architecting and deploying digital capabilities that are innovative, flexible and prepared to meet the changing needs of our consumers, retail partners and employees.

The CISO’s cybersecurity experience includes over thirty years of Information Technology experience, including twenty years within the Information Security field. The CISO’s Information Security roles have included security engineering, security architecture, strategy development and execution, risk and compliance management and identity and access management and incident response. The Company’s CIO has over twenty years of experience, including leading digital transformation and global information technology governance. The Company’s CTO has over twenty years of experience, including deep expertise in developing cutting-edge automated systems, supply chain planning, optimization and simulation, artificial intelligence and predictive analytics. Additional experience held by the CTO is described further under Information about Our Executive Officers.

To ensure our employees are educated on potential cybersecurity threats or actions, we train our executive officers and global workforce on an ongoing basis in the event of a potential cyber threat or cybersecurity incident. Our Company-wide Information Security training program includes security awareness training, including regular phishing simulations, acceptable use training, cyber wellness trainings and other targeted trainings throughout the year. Additional training mechanisms we may use to assess, identify, and manage risks from cybersecurity threats, include simulations, tabletop exercises and response readiness tests to test our preparedness and incident response process. These trainings provide employees the opportunity to gain an understanding of the various forms of cybersecurity incidents and enable our employees to handle and report any suspicious activity or threat.

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Our principal properties include the following:

In addition to the locations indicated above, we also own or lease several other properties and buildings worldwide which we use for manufacturing, sales, distribution and administrative functions. Our facilities are well maintained and generally have adequate capacity to accommodate seasonal demands, changing product mixes and certain additional growth. We regularly improve our facilities to incorporate the latest technologies. The largest facilities are located in Hershey, Lancaster and Hazleton, Pennsylvania; Monterrey and El Salto, Mexico; and Stuarts Draft, Virginia. The U.S., Canada and Mexico facilities in the table above primarily support our North America Confectionery and North America Salty Snacks segments, while the Malaysia facility primarily serves our International segment. As discussed in Note 13 to the Consolidated Financial Statements, we do not manage our assets on a segment basis given the integration of certain manufacturing, warehousing, distribution and other activities in support of our global operations.

Information on legal proceedings is included in Note 15 to the Consolidated Financial Statements.

Not applicable.

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SUPPLEMENTAL ITEM. INFORMATION ABOUT OUR EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

The executive officers of the Company, their positions and, as of February 10, 2025, their ages are set forth below.

There are no family relationships among any of the above-named officers of our Company.

(1) Mr. Archambault was appointed President, U.S. Confection effective February 3, 2025. Prior to joining our Company he was President, U.S. Refreshment Beverages (November 2023), President, Commercial & Beverage Concentrates (August 2022), Chief Customer Officer (October 2018), and Senior Vice President of Commercial Strategy (December 2017) for Keurig Dr. Pepper (formerly Keurig Green Mountain), a beverage and coffeemaker company.

(2) Mr. Bhatia was appointed Senior Vice President, Chief Technology Officer effective October 23, 2023. Prior to joining our Company he was the Vice President of Supply Chain Optimization Technologies (August 2021) and Vice President of Technology, Inventory Planning & Control in Supply Chain Optimization Technologies (March 2019) at Amazon.com, Inc., a multinational technology company.

(3) Ms. McCalman was appointed Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer effective February 23, 2021. Prior to joining our Company she was Senior Director and Assistant Controller for Keurig Dr. Pepper (formerly Keurig Green Mountain) (May 2017), a beverage and coffeemaker company.

Our Executive Officers are generally appointed each year at the organization meeting of the Board in May.

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PART II

Our Common Stock is listed and traded principally on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “HSY.” The Class B Common Stock (“Class B Stock”) is not publicly traded.

The closing price of our Common Stock on December 31, 2024 (the last business day of the of the fiscal year) was $169.35. There were 23,068 stockholders of record of our Common Stock and 5 stockholders of record of our Class B Stock as of December 31, 2024.

We paid $1,084.8 million in cash dividends on our Common Stock and Class B Stock in 2024 and $889.1 million in 2023. The annual dividend rate on our Common Stock in 2024 was $5.480 per share.

On February 5, 2025, our Board declared a quarterly dividend of $1.370 per share of Common Stock payable on March 14, 2025, to stockholders of record as of February 17, 2025. It is the Company’s 380th consecutive quarterly Common Stock dividend. A quarterly dividend of $1.245 per share of Class B Stock also was declared.

Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds

None.

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

There were no purchases of shares of Common Stock made by or on behalf of Hershey, or any “affiliated purchaser” (as defined in Rule 10b-18(a)(3) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended) of Hershey, for each fiscal month in the three months ended December 31, 2024.

In July 2018, our Board of Directors approved a $500 million share repurchase authorization to repurchase shares of our Common Stock. As a result of the February 2023 Stock Purchase Agreement with Hershey Trust Company, as trustee for the Milton Hershey School Trust (the “School Trust”), the July 2018 share repurchase authorization was completed. In May 2021, our Board of Directors approved an additional $500 million share repurchase authorization, which was completed as of March 31, 2024. In December 2023, our Board of Directors approved an additional $500 million share repurchase authorization. This program commenced after the existing May 2021 authorization was completed and is to be utilized at management’s discretion. Approximately $470 million remains available for repurchases under our December 2023 share repurchase authorization. We are authorized to purchase our outstanding shares in open market and privately negotiated transactions. The program has no expiration date and acquired shares of Common Stock will be held as treasury shares. Purchases under approved share repurchase authorizations are in addition to our practice of buying back shares sufficient to offset those issued under incentive compensation plans.

In February 2023, the Company entered into a Stock Purchase Agreement with Hershey Trust Company, as trustee for the School Trust, pursuant to which the Company purchased 1,000,000 shares of the Company’s Common Stock from the School Trust at a price equal to $239.91 per share, for a total purchase price of $239.9 million.

In February 2022, the Company entered into a Stock Purchase Agreement with Hershey Trust Company, as trustee for the School Trust, pursuant to which the Company purchased 1,000,000 shares of the Company’s Common Stock from the School Trust at a price equal to $203.35 per share, for a total purchase price of $203.4 million.

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Stockholder Return Performance Graph

The following graph compares our cumulative total stockholder return (Common Stock price appreciation plus dividends, on a reinvested basis) over the last five fiscal years with the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index and the Standard & Poor’s 500 Packaged Foods Index.

Comparison of 5 Year Cumulative Total Return*

Among The Hershey Company, the S&P 500 Index,

and the S&P 500 Packaged Foods Index

The stock price performance included in this graph is not necessarily indicative of future stock price performance.

This Management’s Discussion and Analysis (“MD&A”) is intended to provide an understanding of Hershey’s financial condition, results of operations and cash flows by focusing on changes in certain key measures from year to year. The MD&A should be read in conjunction with our Consolidated Financial Statements and accompanying Notes included in Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. This discussion contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including those discussed elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, particularly in Item 1A. “Risk Factors.”

The MD&A is organized in the following sections:

• Business Model and Growth Strategy

• Overview

• Trends Affecting Our Business

• Consolidated Results of Operations

• Segment Results

• Liquidity and Capital Resources

• Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

BUSINESS MODEL AND GROWTH STRATEGY

We are the largest producer of quality chocolate in North America, a leading snack maker in the United States and a global leader in chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery. We report our operations through three segments: (i) North America Confectionery, (ii) North America Salty Snacks and (iii) International, as discussed in Note 13 to the Consolidated Financial Statements.

Our vision is to be a leading snacking powerhouse. We aspire to be a leader in meeting consumers’ evolving snacking needs while strengthening the capabilities that drive our growth. We are focused on four strategic imperatives to ensure the Company’s success now and in the future:

• Drive Core Confection Business and Broaden Participation in Snacking. We continue to be the undisputed leader in U.S. confection by taking actions to deepen our consumer connections and utilize our beloved brands to deliver meaningful innovation, while also diversifying our portfolio to capture profitable and incremental growth across the broader snacking continuum.

◦Our products frequently play an important role in special moments among family and friends. Seasons are an important part of our business model and for consumers, as they are highly anticipated, cherished times, centered around traditions. For us, it’s an opportunity for our brands to be part of many connections during the year when family and friends gather.

◦Innovation is an important lever in this variety-seeking category and we are leveraging work from our proprietary demand landscape analytical tool to shape our future innovation and make it more impactful. We are becoming more disciplined in our focus on platform innovation, which should enable sustainable growth over time and significant extensions to our core.

◦To expand our breadth in snacking and become a leading snacking powerhouse, we are focused on continuing to expand the boundaries of our core confection brands to capture new snacking occasions and increasing our exposure into new snack categories through acquisitions.

• Deliver Profitable International Growth. We are focused on ensuring that we efficiently allocate our resources to the areas with the highest potential for profitable growth. We have reset our international investment strategy, while holding fast to our belief that our targeted emerging market strategy will deliver long-term, profitable growth. The uncertain macroeconomic environment in many of these markets is expected to continue and we aim to ensure our investments in these international markets are appropriate relative to the size of the opportunity.

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*•*Expand Competitive Advantage through Differentiated Capabilities. In order to generate actionable insights, we must acquire, integrate, access and utilize vast sources of the right data in an effective manner. We are working to leverage our advanced data and analytical techniques to gain a deep understanding of our consumers, our customers, our shoppers, our end-to-end supply chain, our retail environment and key economic drivers at both a macro and precision level, including digital transformation and new media models. In addition, we are in the process of transforming our supply chain capabilities and enterprise resource planning system, which will enable employees to work more efficiently and effectively.

*•*Responsibly Manage Our Operations to Ensure the Long-Term Sustainability of Our Business, Our Planet and Our People. We are a purpose-driven company and for more than a century, our iconic brands have been built on a foundation of community investment and connections between people around the world. We could not have achieved this without our remarkable employees who make our purpose a reality. We believe our long-standing values make our Company a special place to work.

◦We believe our employees are among our most important resources and are critical to our continued success. We utilize continuous listening surveys that are distributed throughout the year to all employees globally to hear their thoughts on the Company’s direction and their place in it. These continuous touchpoints allow for real-time feedback and action from the Company. These surveys are further supplemented with quarterly and informative enterprise summits and team “Ask Me Anything” meetings, which, in conjunction with the continuous listening surveys, generate stronger employee engagement with the Company’s strategy, initiatives and leadership.

◦Our diverse and inclusive culture makes the difference across all areas of the business. Our gender representation includes women occupying many of the top positions in the Company, including Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board, Chief Accounting Officer and President, Salty Snacks, and approximately 50% representation across the Company. Additionally, four of our 10 Board members are women (40% representation). In 2024, we maintained fair and equitable pay achievements, including aggregate salary U.S. gender pay equity and aggregate U.S. salary people of color pay equity.

◦We continue to make progress on our ESG priorities and continue to elevate these ESG initiatives for a greater global impact. Through our focus on sustainability and social impact across our value chain, we continue to improve and focus on the lives of cocoa farmers and cocoa communities, the environmental priorities of climate change and the role of packaging in our business, responsibly and sustainably sourcing the inputs to our products and increasing investments in human rights and diversity initiatives and growing diverse representation across the organization.

OVERVIEW

Hershey is a global confectionery leader known for making more moments of goodness through chocolate, sweets, mints and other great tasting snacks. We are the largest producer of quality chocolate in North America, a leading snack maker in the United States and a global leader in chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery. We market, sell and distribute our products under more than 90 brand names in approximately 70 countries worldwide.

Our principal product offerings include chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery products; gum and mint refreshment products and protein bars; pantry items, such as baking ingredients, toppings and

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We use certain derivative instruments to manage our interest rate, foreign currency exchange rate and commodity price risks. We monitor and manage these exposures as part of our overall risk management program.

We enter into interest rate swap agreements and foreign currency forward exchange contracts for periods consistent with related underlying exposures. We enter into commodities futures and options contracts and other derivative instruments for varying periods. These commodity derivative instruments are intended to be, and are effective as, economic hedges of market price risks associated with anticipated raw material purchases, energy requirements and transportation costs. We do not hold or issue derivative instruments for trading purposes and are not a party to any instruments with leverage or prepayment features.

In entering into these contracts, we have assumed the risk that might arise from the possible inability of counterparties to meet the terms of their contracts. We mitigate this risk by entering into exchange-traded contracts with collateral posting requirements and/or by performing financial assessments prior to contract execution, conducting periodic evaluations of counterparty performance and maintaining a diverse portfolio of qualified counterparties. We do not expect any significant losses from counterparty defaults.

Refer to Note 1 and Note 5 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for further discussion of these derivative instruments and our hedging policies.

Interest Rate Risk

The total amount of short-term debt, net of cash, amounted to net debt of $576 million and net debt of $318 million, respectively, at December 31, 2024 and 2023. A hypothetical 100 basis point increase in interest rates applied to this variable-rate short-term debt as of December 31, 2024 would have changed interest expense by approximately $7.0 million for 2024 and $3.1 million for 2023.

We consider our current risk related to market fluctuations in interest rates on our remaining debt portfolio, excluding fixed-rate debt converted to variable rates with fixed-to-floating instruments, to be minimal since this debt is largely long-term and fixed-rate in nature. Generally, the fair market value of fixed-rate debt will increase as interest rates fall and decrease as interest rates rise. A 100 basis point increase in market interest rates would decrease the fair value of our fixed-rate long-term debt at December 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023 by approximately $169 million and $203 million, respectively. However, since we currently have no plans to repurchase our outstanding fixed-rate instruments before their maturities, the impact of market interest rate fluctuations on our long-term debt does not affect our results of operations or financial position.

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Foreign Currency Exchange Rate Risk

We are exposed to currency fluctuations related to manufacturing or selling products in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. We may enter into foreign currency forward exchange contracts to reduce fluctuations in our long or short currency positions relating primarily to purchase commitments or forecasted purchases for equipment, raw materials and finished goods denominated in foreign currencies. We also may hedge payment of forecasted intercompany transactions with our subsidiaries outside of the United States. We generally hedge foreign currency price risks for periods from 3 to 12 months.

A summary of foreign currency forward exchange contracts and the corresponding amounts at contracted forward rates is as follows:

The fair value of foreign currency forward exchange contracts represents the difference between the contracted and current market foreign currency exchange rates at the end of the period. We estimate the fair value of foreign currency forward exchange contracts on a quarterly basis by obtaining market quotes of spot and forward rates for contracts with similar terms, adjusted where necessary for maturity differences. At December 31, 2024 and 2023, the net fair value of these instruments was an asset of $0.7 million. In addition, assuming an unfavorable 10% change in year-end foreign currency exchange rates, the fair value of these instruments would have declined by $32.3 million and $20.2 million, respectively, generally offset by a reduction in foreign exchange associated with our transactional activities.

Commodities—Price Risk Management and Futures Contracts

Our most significant raw material requirements include cocoa products, sugar, corn products, dairy products, wheat, peanuts and almonds. The cost of cocoa products and prices for related futures contracts and costs for certain other raw materials historically have been subject to wide fluctuations attributable to a variety of factors. These factors include:

• Commodity market fluctuations;

• Currency exchange rates;

• Imbalances between supply and demand;

• Rising levels of inflation and interest rates related to domestic and global economic conditions or supply chain issues;

• The effects of climate change and extreme weather on crop yield and quality;

• Speculative influences;

• Trade agreements among producing and consuming nations;

• Supplier compliance with commitments;

• Import/export requirements for raw materials and finished goods;

• Political unrest in producing countries;

• Introduction of living income premiums or similar requirements;

• Changes in governmental agricultural programs and energy policies; and

• Other events beyond our control such as the impacts on the business or supply chain arising from the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

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We use futures and options contracts and other commodity derivative instruments in combination with forward purchasing of cocoa products, sugar, corn products, certain dairy products, wheat products, natural gas and diesel fuel primarily to mitigate price volatility and provide visibility to future costs within our supply chain. Currently, active futures contracts are not available for use in pricing our other major raw material requirements, primarily peanuts and almonds. We attempt to minimize the effect of future raw material and energy price fluctuations by using derivatives and forward purchasing to cover future manufacturing requirements generally for 3 to 24 months. However, dairy futures liquidity is not as developed as many of the other commodity futures markets and, therefore, it can be difficult to hedge dairy costs for extended periods of time. We use diesel fuel futures to minimize price fluctuations associated with our transportation costs. Our commodity procurement practices are intended to mitigate price volatility and provide visibility to future costs, but also may potentially limit our ability to benefit from possible price decreases. Our costs for major raw materials will not necessarily reflect market price fluctuations because of our forward purchasing and hedging practices.

Cocoa Products

During 2024, average cocoa futures contract prices increased 131.5% compared with 2023 based on the Intercontinental Exchange futures contract. The production forecast for the 2024 - 2025 season is up over 30% combined in Ghana and Ivory Coast, due to better weather and significantly improved farmer prices. Higher cocoa prices to the consumer has lowered consumption and a return to a surplus production environment is expected in the 2024 - 2025 growing season. The table below shows annual average cocoa futures prices and the highest and lowest monthly averages for each of the calendar years indicated. The prices reflect the monthly averages of the close prices of the nearest active futures trading contracts (second position) on the Intercontinental Exchange.

Source: The Cocoa Merchants Association of America Inc.

Our costs for cocoa products will not necessarily reflect market price fluctuations because of our forward purchasing and hedging practices, premiums and discounts reflective of varying delivery times, and supply and demand for our specific varieties and grades of cocoa liquor, cocoa butter and cocoa powder. As a result, the average futures contract prices are not necessarily indicative of our average costs.

Sugar

The price of sugar is subject to price supports under U.S. farm legislation, which establishes import quotas and duties to support the price of sugar. As a result, sugar prices paid by users in the U.S. are currently higher than prices on the world sugar market. The U.S. delivered east coast refined sugar prices traded in a range of $0.56 to $0.62 per pound during 2024. Prices softened in 2024, driven by large domestic beet and cane crops, as well as overall healthy supply.

Corn Products

We use corn futures to price our corn sweetener product requirements. A projected record yield for the 2024 U.S. crop kept U.S. supplies healthy and drove prices down compared to 2023. Corn prices traded in the range from $3.90 to $4.85 per bushel during 2024. Corn sweetener prices remained consistent due to tight capacity utilization throughout the industry.

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Dairy Products

During 2024, prices for fluid dairy milk ranged from a low of $0.194 per pound to a high of $0.223 per pound, on a Class IV milk basis. Fluid dairy milk prices were higher than 2023 due to decreases in global milk production linked to HPAI avian flu virus and blue tongue virus which impacted herd in the U.S. and Europe, respectively.

Wheat Products

In 2024 we continued utilizing soft and hard wheat futures as a risk management tool for our flour purchasing. Improved U.S. wheat production across the aggregate classes combined with weak global demand has resulted in lower prices across the calendar year. Hard wheat prices traded in the range of $5.35 to $7.45 per bushel during 2024, while soft wheat prices traded in the range of $5.25 to $7.21 per bushel during 2024.

Peanuts and Almonds

Peanut prices in the U.S. ranged from a low of $0.57 per pound to a high of $0.71 per pound during 2024. Prices in 2024 averaged slightly higher than 2023, primarily driven by increased export demand in the first half of the year. Almond prices traded in the range of $2.15 per pound to $2.90 per pound during 2024. Prices in 2024 averaged higher than 2023, driven by a smaller crop size and lower availability of small sized almonds.

Changes in the Value of Futures Contracts

We make or receive cash transfers to or from commodity futures brokers on a daily basis reflecting changes in the value of futures contracts on the Intercontinental Exchange or various other exchanges. These changes in value represent unrealized gains and losses. The cash transfers offset higher or lower cash requirements for the payment of future invoice prices of raw materials, energy requirements and transportation costs.

Commodity Sensitivity Analysis

Our open commodity derivative contracts had a notional value of $667.4 million as of December 31, 2024 and $94.9 million as of December 31, 2023. At the end of 2024, the potential change in fair value of commodity derivative instruments, assuming a 10% decrease in the underlying commodity price, would have increased our net unrealized losses in 2024 by $1.0 million, generally offset by a reduction in the cost of the underlying commodity purchases.

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INDEX TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

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REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

To the Stockholders and the Board of Directors of The Hershey Company

Opinion on the Financial Statements

We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of The Hershey Company (the Company) as of December 31, 2024 and 2023, the related consolidated statements of income, comprehensive income, cash flows, and stockholders' equity for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2024, and the related notes and financial statement schedule listed in the Index at Item 15(a)(2) (collectively referred to as the “consolidated financial statements”). In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company at December 31, 2024 and 2023, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2024, in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.

We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB), the Company's internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2024, based on criteria established in Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (2013 framework), and our report dated February 18, 2025 expressed an unqualified opinion thereon.

Basis for Opinion

These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company's management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s financial statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the PCAOB and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our

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None.

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

The Company’s management, with the participation of the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, has evaluated the effectiveness of the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures, as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”), as of December 31, 2024. Based on that evaluation, the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of December 31, 2024.

Design and Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

Disclosure controls and procedures are controls and other procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in the Company’s reports filed or submitted under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s rules and forms. Disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in the Company’s reports filed under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to management, including the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

Management’s report on the Company’s internal control over financial reporting appears on the following page. During the second quarter of 2024, we completed the process of our multi-year implementation of a new global enterprise resource planning (“ERP”) system, which replaced our then-existing operating and financial systems. The ERP system is designed to accurately maintain the Company’s financial records, enhance operational functionality, and provide timely information to the Company’s management team related to the operation of the business. During the third quarter of 2022, we completed the implementation of one operating segment that is included in our International segment. In July 2023, we completed the transition to our new consolidated financial reporting book of record. During October 2023, we completed the implementation of our new ERP system in the North America Salty Snacks segment. We completed the implementation of our new ERP system in the North America Confectionery segment and select operating segments included in our International segment in April 2024. The implementation of the new ERP system resulted in material changes to our internal controls over financial reporting. The Company has updated the internal controls as appropriate and will continue to monitor the impact of the implementation on our financial reporting business processes. There have been no changes to the Company’s internal control over financial reporting during the fourth quarter of 2024 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting.

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MANAGEMENT’S ANNUAL REPORT ON INTERNAL CONTROL OVER FINANCIAL REPORTING

The management of The Hershey Company is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting, as such term is defined in Exchange Act Rule 13a-15(f). The Company’s internal control system was designed to provide reasonable assurance to the Company’s management and Board of Directors regarding the preparation and fair presentation of published financial statements.

All internal control systems, no matter how well designed, have inherent limitations. Therefore, even those systems determined to be effective can provide only reasonable assurance with respect to financial statement preparation and presentation.

The Company’s management, including the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, assessed the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2024. In making this assessment, the Company’s management used the criteria set forth by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) in Internal Control–Integrated Framework (2013 edition). Based on this assessment, management concluded that, as of December 31, 2024, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting was effective based on those criteria.

Management’s assessment of and conclusion on the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting did not include the internal controls of the acquisition of the Sour Strips brand from Actual Candy, LLC (“Sour Strips”) on November 8, 2024, which is included in the 2024 consolidated financial statements of the Company and constituted less than 1% of total assets as of December 31, 2024 and less than 1% of net sales for the year then ended. This exclusion is in accordance with the guidance issued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that allows companies to exclude acquisitions from management’s report on internal control over financial reporting for the first year after the acquisition.

The Company’s independent auditors have audited, and reported on, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2024.

Director and Executive Officer Trading

A portion of our directors’ and officers’ compensation is in the form of equity awards and, from time to time, they may engage in open-market transactions with respect to their Company securities for diversification or other personal reasons. All such transactions in Company securities by directors and officers must comply with the Company’s Insider Trading Policy, which requires that transactions be in accordance with applicable U.S. federal securities laws that prohibit trading while in possession of material nonpublic information. Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act provides an affirmative defense that enables directors and officers to prearrange transactions in the Company’s securities in a manner that avoids concerns about initiating transactions while in possession of material nonpublic information.

During the three months ended December 31, 2024, no directors or officers (as defined in Rule 16a-1(f) under the Exchange Act) adopted or terminated any contract, instruction or written plan for the purchase or sale of securities that are intended to satisfy the affirmative defense conditions of Rule 10b5-1(c) or any other Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangements or “non-Rule 10b5–1 trading arrangements” (as defined by S-K Item 408(c)).

None.

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PART III

The information regarding executive officers of the Company required by Item 401 of SEC Regulation S-K is incorporated herein by reference from the disclosure included under the caption “Supplemental Item. Information About Out Executive Officers” at the end of Part I of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

The information required by Item 401 of SEC Regulation S-K concerning the directors and nominees for director of the Company, together with a discussion of the specific experience, qualifications, attributes and skills that led the Board to conclude that the director or nominee should serve as a director at this time, will be located in the Company’s Proxy Statement for the 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the “Proxy Statement”) in the section entitled “Proposal No. 1 – Election of Directors,” which information is incorporated herein by reference.

Information regarding the identification of the Audit Committee as a separately-designated standing committee of the Board and information regarding the status of one or more members of the Audit Committee as an “audit committee financial expert” will be located in the Proxy Statement in the section entitled “Corporate Governance – Committees of the Board,” which information is incorporated herein by reference.

Information regarding our Code of Conduct applicable to our directors, officers and employees is located in Part I of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, under the heading “Available Information.”

Information regarding the Company’s Insider Trading Policy required by Item 408(b) of SEC Regulation S-K will be located in the Proxy Statement in the section entitled “Other Compensation Policies and Practices”, which information is incorporated herein by reference.

To the extent disclosure of any delinquent form under Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 is made by the Company, such disclosure will be set forth in our Proxy Statement under the caption “Delinquent Section 16(a) Reports” and is incorporated herein by reference.

Information regarding the compensation of each of our named executive officers, including our Chief Executive Officer that is required by this Item 11 will be located in the Proxy Statement in the section entitled “Compensation Discussion & Analysis” and is incorporated herein by reference. Information regarding the compensation of our directors will be located in the Proxy Statement in the section entitled “Non-Employee Director Compensation,” which information is incorporated herein by reference.

The information required by Item 407(e)(4) of SEC Regulation S-K will be located in the Proxy Statement in the section entitled “Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation,” which information is incorporated herein by reference.

The information required by Item 407(e)(5) of SEC Regulation S-K will be located in the Proxy Statement in the section entitled “Compensation Committee Report,” which information is incorporated herein by reference.

Information concerning ownership of our voting securities by certain beneficial owners, individual nominees for director, the named executive officers, including persons serving as our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, and directors and executive officers as a group, will be located in the Proxy Statement in the section entitled “Share Ownership of Directors, Management and Certain Beneficial Owners,” which information is incorporated herein by reference.

Information regarding all of the Company’s equity compensation plans will be located in the Proxy Statement in the section entitled “Compensation Committee Report – Equity Compensation Plan Information,” which information is incorporated herein by reference.

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Information regarding transactions with related persons will be located in the Proxy Statement in the section entitled “Certain Transactions and Relationships,” which information is incorporated herein by reference. Information regarding director independence will be located in the Proxy Statement in the section entitled “Corporate Governance – Director Independence,” which information is incorporated herein by reference.

Information regarding “Principal Accounting Fees and Services,” including the policy regarding pre-approval of audit and non-audit services performed by our Company’s independent auditors, will be located in the Proxy Statement in the section entitled “Information about Our Independent Auditors,” which information is incorporated herein by reference.

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PART IV

Item 15. EXHIBITS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES

Item 15(a)(1): Financial Statements

The audited consolidated financial statements of The Hershey Company and its subsidiaries and the Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm thereon, as required to be filed, are located under Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Item 15(a)(2): Financial Statement Schedule

Schedule II—Valuation and Qualifying Accounts for The Hershey Company and its subsidiaries for the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023 and 2022 is filed as part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K as required by Item 15(c).

We omitted other schedules because they are not applicable or the required information is set forth in the consolidated financial statements or notes thereto.

The following exhibits are filed as part of, or incorporated by reference into, this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

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None.

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SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Company has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, this 18th day of February, 2025.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the Company and in the capacities and on the date indicated.

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THE HERSHEY COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES

SCHEDULE II—VALUATION AND QUALIFYING ACCOUNTS

For the Years Ended December 31, 2024, 2023 and 2022

(a) Includes allowances for doubtful accounts, anticipated discounts and write-offs of uncollectible accounts receivable.

(b) Includes adjustments to the valuation allowance for deferred tax assets that we do not expect to realize, as well as the release of valuation allowances.

(c) Includes adjustments to the inventory reserve, transfers, disposals and write-offs of obsolete inventory.

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