Hershey benefits from advertising push

Hershey Co., the chocolate maker that dropped a plan to bid for Cadbury Plc this year, jumped as much as 4.3 percent in New York trading after reporting a first-quarter sales increase that beat analysts’ estimates.

Revenue climbed 14 percent to $1.41 billion, as the candy maker’s U.S. market share grew by half a percentage point, the company said today in a statement. Analysts had predicted revenue of $1.29 billion.

The company benefited from increased advertising and promotions, Chief Executive Officer David West said in the statement.

“Your reinvestment in the business is good for both the short term and the long term,” Eric Katzman, an analyst at Deutsche Bank AG, told Hershey executives on a conference call.

Hershey rose $1.84 to $46.68 at 9:46 a.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. Before today, the shares had increased 25 percent.