HERSHEY, PA. — Strong sales contributed to an 18% increase in income at The Hershey Co. during the second quarter.

For the quarter ended June 30, the company had income of $159,504,000, equal to 73c per share on the common stock, which compared with income of $135,685,000, or 62c per share, during the same quarter of the previous year. Sales for quarter were $1,508,514,000, up 7% from $1,414,444,000.

“We delivered another quarter of strong sales and earnings growth driven by solid core brand and new product performance,” said John P. Bilbrey, president and chief executive officer. “Our intellectual capital and Insights Driven Performance program initiative continue to provide us with a competitive advantage in the marketplace. The marketing and sales teams are working collaboratively against the same goal of winning in the marketplace. This has resulted in solid in-store execution related to core brand merchandising and programming as well as new product distribution. Combined with supply chain efficiencies, we have the financial flexibility to invest in our greatest opportunities to drive global growth and deliver on our objectives.”

For the six months ended June 30, the company saw income rise 20% to $401,410,000, or $1.84 per share, which compared with income of $334,336,000, or $1.52 per share, during the same period of the previous year. Sales for the six months were $3,335,940,000, up 6% from $3,146,508,000.